'<! 


'.*    *.V<P^'"^?    ^^      *?«,il;. 


^> 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2007  with  funding  from 

IVIicrosoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/crimesofjaredflaOOflagiala 


J^^cJ  F'//f<^  & 


"^/ic^r/ryics   o-P   Ja/^cJ,   ^^'^<rf 


PUBLISHED  and  COPYRIGHTED 

by 

JARED  FLAGG 

NEW  YORK,  1920 

Eighth  Edition — Part  1  |  This  issue  to  consist  of 

Second  Edition — Part  2  j      One  hundred  thousand  copies 


TO  THE  READER 


Part  1 .  of  this  book  originally  appeared 
under  the  title  of  "Flagg's  Flats,"  It  was 
written  in  1907 — not  published.  No  publisher 
would  accept  the  manuscript — fearing  he  might 
become  implicated  legally.  A  few  typewritten 
copies  were  read  by  my  friends  all  of  whom 
advised  me  not  to  have  it  published  on  the 
ground  that  it  might  cost  me  my  life.  But  at 
that  time  I  was  recklessly  indifferent.  Nothing 
cuts  deeper  than  undeserved  slander  and  I  had 
been  cut  to  the  quick. 

Finally  a  printer  was  found  who  said: — 
"Give  my  lawyer  time  to  examine  the  Court 
records  and  if  he  tells  me  that  the  statements 
contained  in  your  manuscript  are  true  I  will 
print  the  book  if  it  costs  me  my  liberty."  Mr. 
Charles  Francis  said  this  and  in  1  908  the  first 
edition  came  out.  Seven  editions  followed 
each  larger  than  the  preceding  one. 

In  1917,  Part  II  was  added  and  a  new  title 
substituted. 

Anything  worth  reading  at  all  is  worth 
reading  carefully.  If  you  read  this  book  take 
your  time.  In  writing  it  I  have  made  no  at- 
tempt to  palliate  my  faults  and  make  my  side 
appear  better  or  the  other  side  worse  than  the 
facts  justify.  It  is  a  simple  narrative — a  true 
story — relating  to  certain  events  (many  illegal, 
a  few  legal)  given  in  the  order  in  which  they 
occured  without  embellishments — a  copy  of 
the  Court  files — not  so  much  what  I  say  as 
what  the  records  say. 


The  facts  prior  to  these  publications  have 
appeared  only  in  the  Court  records.  Few  read 
the  records;  few,  therefore,  are  familiar  with 
the  facts  in  my  case. 

JARED  FLAGG. 

P.  S.  There  is  no  such  thing  as  criminal 
slander.  One  person  can  say  anything  about 
another  and  the  other  persons  only  redress  is 
by  civil  procedure;  but  let  him  put  it  down  in 
black  on  white  and  it  then,  if  false,  becomes 
criminal  libel.  The  difference  between  talking 
and  writing,  slander  and  libel,  is  jaiL  If  the 
author  "goes  up"  the  printer  is  liable  to  go 
with  him. 

Over  ten  years  have  passed  since  the  first 
edition  (Part  1 )  was  published.  Over  ten 
years  ago  I  sent  marked  copies  to  all  the  news- 
paper editors  and  the  public  officials  therein 
denounced.  I  accused  them  respectively  of 
being  liars,  scoundrels,  thieves,  blackmailers, 
perjurers  and  forgers;  then  folded  my  arms,  so 
to  speak  and  waited  to  see  what  they  were 
going  to  do  about  it.  They  didn't  do  anything 
— didn't  even  let  out  a  peep.  And  from  that 
day  to  this  I  have  not  heard  one  word  from 
any  one  of  them.  I  have  however,  heard  many 
expressions  of  righteous  indignation  from 
others,  and  have  received  no  end  of  com- 
mendatory letters  from  friends  and  from  utter 
strangers.  Have  also  received  (and  executed) 
orders  from  all  the  largest  public  libraries  and 
all  the  greatest  educational  institutions  in  the 
United  States.  In  short,  it  has  fallen  to  the  lot 
of  few  men,  in  any  sphere  of  life,  to  be 
felicitated  and  feated  as  I  have  been  since  I 
wrote  and  published  this  book. 


LETTERS  FROM  UNIVERSITIES 

YALE    UNIVERSITY    LIBRARY. 

New   Haven,    Conn. 
Mr.  Jared  Flagg. 

Dear  Sir:  I  take  the  liberty  of  asking  whether  a 
copy  of  your  "Flagg's  Flats"  could  be  deposited  in 
this  Library  for  the  use  of  future  students  and  in- 
vestigators in   genealogy  and  history. 

Assuring  you  that  the  book  could  be  put  to  no 
better  use,    I   remain, 

Yours  respectfully, 

J.  C.  Schwab, 

Librarian. 

HARVARD  COLLEGE  LIBRARY. 

Cambridge,   Mass. 
Jared  Flagg,  Esq. 

Dear  Sir:  My  attenion  has  been  called  to  the 
publication  named  below  and  to  the  desirability  of 
placing  it  in  this  Library  for  the  use  of  professors 
and   students   of  the   University. 

The  work  not  being  readily  procurable  through  the 
book-trade,  I  venture  to  ask  that  the  Library  may  be 
favored  by  the  gift  of  a  copy.  Your  kindness  in  this 
matter  will  be  highly  appreciated. 

William  C.   Lane, 
"Flagg's  Flats,"  by  Jared  Flagg.  Librarian. 

COLUMBIA   UNIVERSITY,    IN    THE   CITY   OF 

NEW  YORK.  LIBRARY. 
Mr.  Jared  Flagg. 

My    dear    Sir:      My    attention     has    been    called    to 

your    book    entitled    "Flagg's    Flats,"    and    if    you    will 

present   a    copy  to   this   Library   we  will   be  very   glad 

to  receive  one  for  preservation  among  our  collections. 

Very  truly  yours, 

W.  D.  Johnston, 

Librarian. 

LIBRARY  OF  PRINCETON  UNIVERSITY. 

Princeton,   N.  J. 
Jared  Flagg,  Esq. 

Dear  Sir:  I  am  advised  a  book  called  "Flagg's 
Flats"  is  to  be  desired  for  this  library,  and,  being 
privately  printed,  is  to  be  had  only  from  you. 

It  w^ould  be  much  appreciated  if  you  should  see  fit 
to  promote  the  usefulness  of  this  library  by  giving  or 
selling   us   a    copy. 

Believe  me.  Yours  very  truly, 

E.    C.   Richardson. 


VASSAR  COLLEGE  LIBRARY. 

Pougkkeepsie,   N.   Y. 
Mr.  Jared  Flagg. 

Dear  Sir:  We  very  much  desire  to  have  in  this 
library  a  book  entitled  "Flagg'a  Flats,"  of  whictt  you 
are  the  author,  but  we  have  learned  that  it  is  not  for 
sale.  If  we  may  not  buy  a  copy,  may  we  beg  one? 
There  is  much  interest  here  in  the  subject  with  which 
it  deals. 

Very  truly  yours, 

A.   Underhill, 
Ref.   Librarian. 

THE  JOHN  HOPKINS  UNIVERSITY 

Baltimore,   Md. 
Mr.  Jared  Flagg. 

Dear  Sir:  The  library  of  the  John  Hopkins  Uni- 
versity would  be  pleased  to  receive  a  copy  of  "Flagg** 
Flats."  Upon  its  receipt  a  suitable  acknowledgement 
will  be  sent. 

Very  truly  yours, 

Dr.   M.   L.    Raney, 

Librarian. 

CORNELL  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 

Ithaca,  N.  Y. 
Mr.  Jared  Flagg. 

Dear  Sir:  The  Cornell  University  Library  has  a 
considerable  number  of  books  on  municipal  govern- 
ment of  cities  and  kindred  topics,  and  would  be  much 
pleased  to  add  your  work,   "Flagg's  Flats." 

If  you  are  willing  to  send  one  to  our  library  it  will 
be  regarded  as  a  great  favor. 

Yours  respectfully, 

Andrew  C.  White, 

Asst.  Librarian. 

UNIVERSITY  OF  MICHIGAN. 

Dear  Sir:  We  have  five  copies  of  your  book, 
"Flagg's  Flats."  If  you  can  spare  another  copy  it 
would  be  «nuch  appreciated  by  the  following:  Miss 
Mary  Pratt,  Librarian,  Mitchell  Public  Library,  Hills- 
dale, Mich.  Please  send  C.  O.  D.,  direct  to  Hillsdale. 
Thanking  you  for  your  kind  response  to  our  former 
request    I   am. 

Very   gratefully   yours, 

Theo.  W.  Koch. 

Librarian. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  PENNSYLVANIA, 

THE   LIBRARY 

Philadelphia,  P«. 
Mr.   Jared  Flagg. 

Dear  Sir:  I  have  heard  that  recently  you  have  had 
printed  a  book  entitled  "Flagg's  Flat«,"  which  is  of 
great  interest  and  importance  in  connection  with  the 
Municipal  Government  of  New  York  City,  showing 
the  misrule,  etc.,  which  has  been  carried  on  there. 
May  I  ask  you  if  it  is  possible  to  send  a  copy  of  this 
book  to  the  University  of  Pennsylvania  Library?  We 
would  be  very  grateful  to  you  if  you  can  comply 
with  this  request. 

Very  truly  yours 

{Catherine  S.   Lieper, 

Assistant  Librarian. 

THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  CHICAGO. 

(Founded  by  John  D.  Rockefeller) 

Office    of  the   Librarian. 

Chicago,   111. 
Mr.  Jared  Flagg. 

Dear  Sir:  We  have  heard  of  a  recent  book  pub- 
lished by  you,  and  entitled  "Flagg's  Flats."  If  it  be 
not  asking  too  much  we  should  be  very  glad  to  get 
two  copies,  one  for  our  General  Library,  and  one  for 
our  Dept.  of  Political  Economy.  If  you  can  oblige 
us  in  this  way,  kindly  send  them  by  express,  collect. 
Truly  yours, 

Zella  Allen  Dixson, 

Librarian^ 

SYRACUSE  UNIVERSITY. 

Syracuse,   N.   Y. 
Mr.   Jared   Flagg. 

New  York  City. 
Dear    Sir:      Would    it   be    possible    for    our    library   to 
obtain  a   copy   of  your  book,    "Flagg's   Flats"? 
Yours  very  trulv, 

'  M.   J.   Sibley, 
Acting   Librarian. 


THE  WELLESLEY  COLLEGE, 
My  Dear  Mr.  Flagg:      The  Wellesly  College  Library 
desires  a  copy  of  your  book,   "Flagg's  Flats." 
Very  truly  yours, 

H.  St.  B.   Brooks, 

Acting  Librarian. 


8 

THE  COLLEGE  OF  THE  CITY  OF  NEW  YORK. 
Mr.  Jared  Flagg. 

Dear    Sir:      If    you    will    send    us    a    copy    of    your 
work,   "Flagg's  Flats,"  we  will  gladly  defray  cost  and 
make  the  book  accessible  to  readers  in  our  library. 
Yours  truly, 

Henry  E.  Bliss, 

Deputy  Librarian. 

NEW  YORK  UNIVERSITY  SCHOOL  OF  LAW. 

Washington  Square,  Elast,  New  York  City. 
Jared  Flagg,   Esq. 

Dear  Sir:      May  I  request  a  copy  of  "Flagg's  Flats" 
for    our   Law   Library,    32    Waverly   Place,    New   York 
City?       We  shall  appreciate  it,   I  assuie  you. 
Very  truly, 

Leslie  J.   Tompkins, 

Secretary. 

UNIVERSITY  OF  SOUTHERN  CALIFORNIA 
College   of  Liberal   Arts. 

Los  Angeles,  Cal. 
My    dear    Mr.    Flagg:      We    would    like    very    much 
to  have  a  copy  of  your  book,   "Flagg's  Flats,'"  in  our 
library.      What   would  be  the   cost? 

Very  truly  you  rs, 

C.   N.   Brown, 

Librarian. 

DE  PAUW  UNIVERSITY 

Green  Castle,   Indiana. 
Mr.  Jared  Flagg. 

Dear  Sir:  Will  you  kindly  send  a  copy  of  your 
book,  "Flagg's  Flats,"  to  our  library?  It  would  be 
appreciated  here.  We  have  a  debate  in  preparation 
on  the  subject  of  city  government,  and  would  find  it 
espf'-ially  useful. 

Very  truly  yours, 

L.  M.  Powell, 

Librarian. 
Ann  Harbor,   Mich. 


CRIMES  OF  JARED  FLAGG 

PART    1    CHAPTER    1 

It  is  dangerous  to  have  an  idea.  There 
is  no  telling  where  a  man  with  an  idea  may 
land.  I  once  had  an  idea  and  it  landed  me 
in  the  Tombs. 

It  occurred  to  me  that  the  majority  of 
people  were  honest,  and  if  installment  fur- 
niture dealers  were  willing  to  trust  customers 
ninety  per  cent  of  goods  purchased  it  should 
be  safe  to  trust  them  one  hundred  per  cent. 
If  it  were  policy  to  deliver  one  hundred  dol- 
lars' worth  of  furniture  on  ten  dollars  down 
and  take  chances  on  collecting  the  remaining 
ninety,  it  would  be  feasible  to  sell  one  hun- 
dred dollars'  worth  or  more  without  the  cus- 
tomary ten  per  cent  deposit.  The  first  large 
advance  payment  should  be  eliminated  and  the 
entire  bill  liquidated  by  weekly  payments. 
That  was  my  idea  and  I  imparted  it  to  Mr. 
Jacob  Baumann,  of  J.  &  S.  Baumann,  fur- 
niture dealers.  At  first  Mr.  Baumann  did  not 
take  kindly  to  it.  "It  had  never  been  tried — 
would  be  risky",  etc.  But  when  a  person 
has  nothing  to  risk,  and  everything  to  gain 
he  can  talk  impressively,  and  I  explained  how 
the  system  in  vogue  worked  a  hardship  on 
young  couples;  it  was  deterring  many  from 
marrying;  it  was  not  so  much  the  inflated  in- 
stallment prices  as  the  large  advance  payment. 


Therefore,  I  maintained  that  the  dealer  who 
had  the  foresight  to  adopt  my  idea  would 
reap   a   reward. 

"If  so  sanguine  it  can  be  worked  without 
loss,"  said  Mr.  Baumann,  "you  advance  the 
first  ten  per  cent  and  we  will  then  fill  orders 
provided  we  are  satisfied  with  the  references 
After  we  have  collected  an  amount  equal  to 
that  advanced  by  you  we  will  return  it;  but 
if  any  of  your  customers  skip  with  the  goods, 
or  return  them  before  we  have  collected  the 
first  payment,  you  will  forfeit  your  ten  per 
cent.  Agree  to  this,  and  we  will  pay  you 
a  commission  on  moneys  collected."  A  con- 
tract was  signed,  and  although  I  felt  ticklish 
in  assuming  a  risk  I  had  urged  another  to 
assume  I  lost  no  time  in  beginning  operations. 
An  advertisement  appeared  inviting  those  de- 
siring to  furnish  homes  on  the  installment  plan 
without  any  payment  down  to  call  at  my  office. 

A  gentlemen  called,  one  about  to  be  mar- 
ried. He  knew  of  a  flat  that  suited  "them" 
but  the  landlord  wanted  rent  in  advance.  The 
gas  trust  required  a  cash  deposit.  The  minis- 
ter expected  his  fee,  spot  cash,  and  would 
prefer  it  in  gold.  Every  one  wanted  cash 
down  except  Mr.  Flagg,  and  this  was  why  he 
had  called.  They  estimated  the  flat  could  be 
furnished  for  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars 
but  Mr.  Flagg,  "an  experienced  furniture  man' 
would  know  best."  Mr.  Flagg  knew  nothing. 
It  depended  on  his  "intended";  if  the  young 
woman  had  ideas  there  was  no  computing  what 
it  might  cost.  "Anything  that  suits  me  will 
suit  Elphye,"  he  said;  but  it  proved  the  re- 
verse; everything  that  suited  Elphye  suited 
him.  Consequently  with  Elphye' s  notions  of 
what  might  "look  cute",  the  bill  amounted 
to   three   hundred   and   fifty   dollars.      Still   as 


II 

weekly  payments  were  to  be  moderate  a  chat- 
tel mortgage  was  signed,  his  references  looked 
up  and  1,  as  per  agreement,  deposited  with 
the  firm  ten  per  cent  of  his  bill — thirty-five 
dollars. 

At  this  particular  time  I  may  have  looked 
like  ready  cash  but  I  was  pinched  financially, 
my  capital  being  three  hundred  dollars.  Yet, 
why  should  I,  who  had  so  often  staked  thous- 
ands hesitate  now?  Nothing  is  so  imprudent 
as  excessive  prudence.  So  up  it  went — my 
last  dollar — on  my  idea. 

The  advertisements  drew — the  "no  cash 
down"  proposition  proved  attractive.  My 
sales  the  first  week  amounted  to  three  thous- 
and dollars,  therefore,  I  made  three  hundred. 
The  only  trouble — it  was  paper  profit.  I 
could  see  no  cash,  not  even  a  small  balance; 
my  capital  was  gone;  it  was  "up"  as  security 
"in  the  firm's  bank"  and  likely  to  remain 
there  for  some  time. 

If  one  cannot  pay  with  checks  he  should 
pay  with  notes.  No  man  is  too  poor  to  draw^ 
a  note,  therefore  bright  and  early  the  next 
week  I  started  for  the  store  armed  with  a 
pocket  full  of  blank  notes  and  several  cus- 
tomers; one  a  boarding  house  keeper,  wished 
to  furnish  a  fourteen  room  house.  My  sales 
that  day — not  week — amounted  to  four  thous- 
and dollars;  that  was  making  money — that 
was  my  idea. 

Money  may  not  buy  happiness  but  it  will 
buy  a  lovely  imitation.  That  day  I  lunched 
with  members  of  the  firm  who  conveyed  to 
my  mind  the  best  was  none  too  good  for  me. 
They  invited  me  to  make  myself  comfortable 
in  their  innermost  private  office  while  "poor 
devils" — the  fifteen  and  twenty-dollar-per- 
weck-clerks  who  never  knew  what  it  was  to 
have  an  idea — waited  on  my  customers. 


12 


At  the  close  of  the  day  the  cashier  informed 
me  that  a  note  was  not  a  check.  Instead  of 
four  hundred  dollars,  the  first  payment  (ten 
per  cent)  to  which  the  firm  was  entitled,  I  had 
tendered  a  ninety-day  note.  "This  is  not  in 
accordance  with  the  agreement,"  he  said:  "I 
am  not  authorized  to  accept  it — the  firm  will 
have  to  be  consulted." 

Whereupon  I  did  the  consulting,  the  firm 
did  the  authorizing  and  the  cashier  accepted 
the  note.  The  next  day  without  being  au- 
thorized he  accepted  another  and  kept  accept- 
ing them.  And  when  I  intimated  that  I  lacked 
the  wherewithal  to  pay  for  my  advertisements 
I  was  told  to  draw  a  note  and  present  it  to 
the  cashier,  and  when  I  saw  and  counted  the 
cash  it  dawned  on  me,  that  after  all,  my  notes 
might    be    better    than    I    thought    they    were. 

In  course  of  time,  the  three  hundred  orig- 
inal capital  came  back,  and  as  new  notes  were 
''floated",  old  ones  were  redeemed  and  real, 
not  paper,  profits  started  to  flow  in  my  direc- 
tion. It  had  taken  time,  but  when  once  started 
they  came,  faster  and  faster,  larger  and  larger 
— one,  two,  three  years,  and  still  they  came. 
Not  only  the  Baumann  firm,  but  five  other 
firms  were  now  contributing  to  my  bank  ac- 
count. One  of  these — Henry  Thousen  & 
Company — became  financially  involved  and  in 
lieu  of  a  cash  settlement  I  was  constrained  to 
accept  commissions  in  furniture.  Not  wishing 
to  have  this  furniture  "eat  itself  up"  in  stor- 
age I  furnished  a  flat  with  a  view  of  renting  it 
at  a  profit. 

This  was  the  beginning,  this  accident,  I  did 
not  realize  it  but  it  was  the  beginning  just 
the  same  of  the  so-called  "Flagg  Flats".  Had 
I  known  then  what  I  now  know  that  little  five 
loom  flat,  with  its  porcelain  bath-tub  and  sta- 


15 


tionary  ice-box,  would  never  have  been  fur- 
nished by  me — not  in  a  hundred  years.  Yet 
there  is  nothing  wrong  in  subletting  a  flat  at 
a  profit.  Every  human  being  has  the  right 
of  habitation,  just  as  he  has  the  right  to  eat, 
but  no  person  has  the  legal  right  to  rent  an- 
other an  abode  for  immoral  purposes.  Know- 
ing this,  I  was  particular  in  procuring  a  ten- 
ant, after  which  I  simply  made  an  arrangement 
with  the  janitor  to  collect  the  rent  and  remit 
proceeds. 

The  fourth  year  passed  and  people  still  came 
to  purchase  furniture  without  a  payment  down. 
My  two  line  advertisements  did  the  work,  my 
business  prospered;  there  was  not  a  cloud  on 
the  horizon;  even  little  imitators  were  no  long- 
er in  evidence.  It  seemed  at  last  that  I  wais 
to  experience  joy — the  joy  the  rich  take  in 
making  their  dearest  friends  and  poorest  rel- 
atives green  with  envy.  But  this  happiness — 
the  ambition  of  so  many — was  not  for  me. 

The  unexpected  happened.  The  original 
Baumann  firm,  the  members  of  which  had 
backed  me,  was  at  this  time  transacting  a  stu- 
pendous business.  My  trade,  although  not  to 
be  despised,  was  a  bagatelle  compared  to 
theirs,  but  their  largest  competitor — Ludwig 
Baumann — was  not  aware  of  this  and  attri- 
buted the  activity  of  J.  &  S.  Baumann  to  "that 
man  Flagg".  "He  is  doing  it — he  is  the  one." 
If  we  allow  him  to  continue,  in  time  he  will 
gobble  up  all  the  trade  in  town.  We  do  not 
approve  of  the  no  cash  down  idea;  we  never 
heard  of  selling  furniture  on  such  a  crazy  bcisis 
until  we  heard  of  Flagg.  He  has  ruined  the 
business,  now  we  will  ruin  him;  we  will  give 
hijn  a  dose  of  his  own  medicine,  and  they 
certainly  made  it  interesting  for  me. 

Ingenuity,  integrity,  sobriety,  efficiency  and 


14 

energy  often  count  as  nothing  compared  to 
capital.  This  rival  firm  possessed  power — 
money — and  with  it  could  drive  me  from  the 
field  as  easily  as  1  had  driven  others — little 
impecunious  competitors  who  had  essayed  to 
interfere  with  my  business. 

The  first  gun,  or  rather  broadside,  was  fired 
February  25,  1890;  and  from  that  day  in  their 
particular  line  of  endeavor  I  cannot  say  I  have 
been  a  factor.  On  that  memorable  day  this 
rival  firm  bought  a  full  page  in  all  the  lead- 
ing newspapers,  and  in  flaring  type  announced 
they  would  henceforth  sell  furniture  on  the 
longest  credit  and  without  any  payment  down. 

The  other  firm,  J.  &  S.  Baumann,  did  not 
wish  to  aid  in  putting  me  out  of  business  but 
asked  if  I  could  afford  to  expend  in  advertis- 
ing five  hundred  dollars  a  day.  Self-preser- 
vation is  the  first  law  of  nature  and  in  justice 
to  themselves  they  would  have  to  strike  back. 
There  was  to  be  war;  thousands  were  to  be 
squandered  in  advertising  those  three  little 
words,  "No  money  down." 

A  fifty  cent  advertisement  is  no  match  for 
a  five  hundred  dollar  advertisement.  And  so  it 
came  to  pass  at  the  expiration  of  four  years 
that  I,  who  had  revolutionized  for  the  time 
being,  the  installment  business  of  the  city  sud- 
denly found  myself  swallowed  up  as  it  were, 
just  as  big  fish  swallow  little  fish.  Unfortun- 
ately, however,  I  was  not  a  bankrupt.  Had  I 
at  that  crucial  moment  been  stranded  without 
a  dollar  how  different  it  all  might  have  been; 
how  different  my  life;  how  brilliant  a  future 
I  might  have  had.  My  reputation  was  intact; 
my  relatives  had  not  been  humiliated  and  I 
had  not  been  "damned"  by  prison  bars.  But 
fate  was  against  me;  thousands  were  still  to  be 
placed  to  my  credit.  Those  three  potent 
words  had  paid  a  profit. 


15 

How  was  I  to  invest  this  profit?     Every  firm 
with  which  I  had  been  associated  was  in  my 
debt.      The  money  came  to  them  in  driblets. 
At   intervals   I    received,    according    to    agree- 
ment, commissions  on  money  collected.      The 
firms  would  foreclose  no  mortgages,  if  buyers 
made  payments  however  small;  therefore  bills 
which    should    have    been    liquidated    in    two 
years  might  drag  on  four  or  five,   and  it  was 
to  be  a  long  wait.      I  wanted  funds  to  pay  for 
the  necessary  luxuries  of  life  and  if  I  waited 
for  the  money  to  come  in  it  might  go  as  fast 
as   it  came.      But  if   in   lieu   of  cash  commis- 
sions I  would  accept  furniture  every  firm  with 
which   I   was   associated   would    settle    on    the 
spot.      And  by  utilizing  this  furniture  in  flats 
I    could    derive    a    permanent    income.      We 
usually   do    that   which   we    deem    best   under 
existing  conditions,  and  in  the  light  of  the  ex- 
cellent showing  made  by  the   first  flat  I   had 
furnished — the    accident — it    seemed    best    to 
derive    a    steady    income    from — rather    than 
draw    on — my    principal.      This    original    flat 
had  paid  a  profit  of  four  dollars  per  week  for 
fifty-two  weeks.      In  renting  it  I  happened  to 
find  tenants  in  all  respects  desirable  and  owing 
to  this  misfortune  my  calculations  miscarried. 
Had  I  leased  it  to  a  tenant  capable  of  paying 
the  first  months  rent  but  not  the  second,  and 
after  being  put  to  the  expense  of  dispossessing 
him  had  I  had  the  good  fortune  to  have  found 
another  capable  of  creating  such  a  disturbance 
that   the   owner   of   the   property  would   have 
felt  it  incumbent  to   have   dispossessed   me,   I 
might  then  have  been  able  to  form  a  better 
estimate  of  the  ultimate  profits  of  the  business; 
but  as  it  was  I  unknowingly  fooled  myself  by 
basing  my  figures  on  the  actual  cash  showing 
of  this  original  flat.      I  said  to  myself,   *'If  one 
furnished  flat  will  yield  a  profit  of  four  dollars 


16 

per  week,  one  hundred  will  yield — four  hun- 
dred dollars  per  week."  And  not  many 
weeks  later  I  had  one  hundred  flats  in  opera- 
tion. The  furniture  firms  then  owed  me 
nothing  and  had  I  stopped  there  might  have 
made  a  success  of  the  business,  but  like  many 
others  I  did  not  become  conservative  until  too 
late,  I  did  not  appreciate  that  my  business 
was  running  smoothly,  well  in  hand  and  every 
detail  looked  after;  nor  did  I  consider  that 
there  might  be  pitfalls;  I  thought  I  knew  it  all 
so  staked  all,  jeopardized  a  small  certainty  for 
a  large  uncertainty.  I  was  ambitious  and 
wanted  an  income  of  one  hundred  thousand 
dollars  a  year.  If  one  hundred  flats  could  be 
made  to  pay  a  profit  of  four  hundred  dollars 
per  week,  five  hundred  could  be  made  to  pay 
five  times  four  hundred,  or  two  thousand  per 
week — one  hundred  thousand  dollars  a  year. 
These  were  my  figures;  figures  usually  look  bet- 
ter on  paper  than  in  real  life.  However,  correct 
or  incorrect,  the  fact  remained  that  the  furni- 
ture firms  were  willing  to  trust  me.  With 
money,  money  is  made.  Why  not  use  a  little  of 
their  money?  Why  not  have  five  hundred  flats? 
And  five  years  from  the  day  I  embarked  in 
the  business  I  did  have  four  hundred  and 
eighty-eight  flats  equipped  to  the  most  minute 
detail;  pictures,  linen,  silver,  china,  cooking 
utensils  and  all.  To  facilitate  business  I  ran 
an  upholstering  shop,  a  carpet  cleaning  estab- 
lishment, a  crockery  and  tin-pan  store,  and 
laundry  in  which  three  thousand  of  my  sheets 
were  washed  each  week.  I  enaployed  book- 
keepers, collectors,  janitors,  night  watchmen, 
scrub  women,  painters,  paper  hangers  and 
plumbers,  by  the  year.  Also  a  bed-bug  gang 
— the  only  one  of  its  kind  ever  organized  in 
the  United  States. 

About  this  time  every  one,   it  seemed,  had 


17 

heard  of  the  "Flagg  Flats;"  and  as  a  result 
money  flowed  into  my  office  like  water  but 
it  also  flowed  out.  Owners  of  flat  property 
entreated  me  to  buy.  They  told  me  to  name 
terms  and  I  named  them.  And  on  May  1 , 
1894,  I  held  title,  as  shown  in  the  Hall  of 
Records,  to  over  half  a  million  of  flat  property 
all  of  which  has  since  advanced  enormously 
in  value.  I  would  ultimately  have  owned  all 
free  and  clear  had  not  the  police  manifested  a 
disposition  to  go  into  business  with  me. 

To  this  I  objected. 

I  told  Captain  J.  J.  Donohue,  of  the  West 
Twentieth  Street  Police  Station,  and  Captain 
James  K.  Price,  of  the  West  Thirty-seventh 
Street  Police  Station,  and  Captain  Martins,  of 
the  East  Thirty-fifth  Street  Police  Station,  that 
if  I  were  a  person  who  would  engage  in  a  dis- 
reputable business  I  could  see  some  object  in 
taking  them  into  partnership,  but  as  I  was  not 
such  a  person  would  share  no  profits  w^ith 
them.  In  confirmation  of  this  I  here  quote 
from  the  minutes  of  my  flat  trial  (which  will 
be  described  in  subsequent  chapters)  : 

"Captain  Donohue  wanted  one  hundred 
dollars  a  month  and  I  would  not  give  it  to  him 
(this  was  before  I  was  indicted)  and  McCon- 
ville  came  to  me  (after  I  was  indicted)  and 
said  I  was  a  fool  and  standing  in  my  own 
light:  that  if  I  would  arrange  with  the  Captain 
substantially  I  could  be  protected,  and  I  said. 
Til  give  you  nothing;  I  am  engaged  in  a  law- 
ful business,  and  I  will  give  you  or  your 
Captain  nothing.' 

This  statement  I  made  in  Court  under  oath 
and  it  stood  uncontradicted  to  the  end  as  I 
shall  show  hereafter  by  excerpts  from  the 
Court  Records.  I  was  firm  because  I  believed 
my  position  impregnable.  From  the  start  I 
had   been   animated   by  a    desire   to   succeed; 


18 

not  to  destroy  myself;  and,  aside  from  right 
or  wrong,  I  knew  that  one  disreputable  tenant 
might  drive  ten  reputable  onea  out.  Every 
superintendent  I  had,  subsequently  testified 
that  I  had  given  orders  to  dispossess,  at  any 
cost,  questionable  characters  who  might  gain 
admittance.  My  jury  heard  this  and  other 
evidence  and  so  acquitted  me  of  the  charge 
that  I  knowingly  rented  flats  to  disreputable 
persons. 

It  is  not  the  act,  it  is  the  intention.  Was  it 
my  intention  to  bring  notoriety  on  my  relatives 
and  myself?  This  is  the  question;  and  those 
effected  should  have  answered  it  before  pass- 
ing censure.  They  should  have  considered  my 
intentions;  and  my  object  in  having  explained 
at  length  all  the  circumstances  which  influenced 
me  to  embark  in  the  flat  business  is  to  refute 
the  charge  that  I  deliberately  engaged  in  the 
business  for  the  purpose  of  renting  my  premises 
to  dissolute  persons.  Even  recently,  years 
after  having  been  acquitted  of  this  offence, 
certain  newspapers  despite  the  court  records 
have  published  that  I  v/as  adjudged  guilty  of 
the  infamous  charge.  And  many  persons  who 
read  newspapers  but  do  not  read  court 
records  believe  me  a  vicious  character.  The 
police,  however,  not  only  the  blackmailing  but 
also  the  honest  members  of  the  force  know 
the  truth.  Police  Commissioner  Parker,  Chief 
of  Police  Moses  W.  Cortright,  Inspector 
Schmittberger,  Police  Captain  Chapman, 
Central  Office  Detective  Mason,  and  other 
honest  members,  have  said  that  it  was  "handed 
out"  to  me. 

It  was  "handed  out"  to  many  according  to 
the  following: 

Captain  Donohue's  salary  w^as  $2750.  per 
year.  In  1914,  several  New  York  daily 
papers  stated  that:   "forty  thousand  dollars  in 


19 

cash  was  found  locked  in  his  private  desk  in 
the  West  20th  St.  station  house." 

Detective  McConville's  salary  was  $1050- 
per  year,  but  according  to  the  newspapers,  his 
wife,  when  suing  for  a  separation  in  1914, 
stated  he  was  worth  over  $200,000,  The 
New  York  World  published,  Sept.  24th,  1914, 
'*  X  X  McConville  was  said  from  time  to  time 
to  be  one  of  the  richest  men  on  the  force." 

These  two  professional  blackmailers,  Dono- 
hue  and  McConville,  wanted  money,  not  law, 
and  imagined  I  would  scare  at  the  sight  of 
gold  shields  and  brass  buttons  and  disgorge  as 
others  had  disgorged;  but  when  they  discover* 
ed  they  had  encountered  a  man  who  would 
abide  by  his  decision  they  assumed  a  different 
attitude;  and  then — not  at  the  beginning — I 
was  given  to  understand  in  language  more 
potent  than  polished  that  I  could  take  the 
consequences. 
I  took  them. 

Two  days  after  this  final  warning  Police 
Captain  Donohue  and  his  "man  Friday," 
Officer  McConville,  on  ex  parte  evidence — 
which  is  no  evidence — secured  an  indictment 
against  me. 

I  quote  my  lawyer  addressing  the  Court  :- 
"That  was  the  23d  of  May,  and  on  the  25th 
of  May  these  two  people  alone — the  law^  re- 
quires that  the  indictments  shall  contain  the 
endorsement  of  all  the  witnesses  examined 
before  the  Grand  Jury — and  these  two  did 
not  invoke  the  aid  of  anybody — but  Donohue 
and  McConville  alone,  two  days  after  the  re- 
fusal of  Flagg  to  submit  to  their  demands, 
procured  this  indictment  on  ex  parte  evidence." 
What  is  a  Grand  Jury?  What  is  an  indict- 
ment? What  is  ex  parte  evidence?  Webster's 
Dictionary  defines  a  Grand  Jury  as  one  to  de- 
cide whether  an  accused  person  is  to  be  placed 


20 

on  trial.  If  he  is,  then  this  Jury  issues  a  docu- 
ment called  an  indictment.  If,  before  issuing 
the  indictment,  the  members  of  said  Jury  care 
to  hear  both  sides  of  the  story  they  can  send 
for  the  accused  person  and  hear  what  he  haa 
to  say  on  the  subject.  But  they  did  not  send 
for  me;  they  did  not  hear  what  I  had  to  say; 
they  simply  indicted  me  on  what  is  called  ex- 
parte  evidence. 

The  definition  of  ex-parte  according  to 
Webster's  Dictionary  is  "one  part;"  that  which 
is  brought  forward  as  evidence  by  one  side 
only. 

And  it  was  on  such  evidence  tl^at  I  wa« 
indicted. 

Captain  Donohue  did  the  swearing  and  his 
"man"  McConville,  the  corroborating,  two 
days  after  I  had  been  warned  that  I  could 
"abide  the  consequences."  Donohue  who  at 
the  time  had  never  been  in  one  of  my  flats 
and  was  not  acquainted  with  a  single  one  of 
my  tenants,  testified  before  the  Grand  Jury 
that  he  personally  knew  my  tenants  were  im- 
moral and  knew  I  knew  it. 

What  do  you  think  of  that  for  ex-parte 
evidence? 

And  the  "man  Friday,"  who  at  the  time  did 
not  even  know  me,  what  did  he  do?  He 
kissed  the  bible  and  to  make  himself  solid  with 
his  master,  Donohue,  swore  he  did  know  me. 
I  quote  from  the  Court  records:  "On  the  25th 
of  May,  1 894,  McConville  went  before  the 
Grand  Jury  and  swore  to  this  indictment 
against  Flagg.  McConville  then  comes  before 
this  jury  and  swears  he  never  saw  Flagg  until 
the  3 1  st  of  May,  1 894.  He  swears  that  he 
w^as  one  of  the  witnesses  upon  whose  testimony 
this  indictment  on  the  25th  of  May  was  found; 
and  he  swears  before  you  thereafter  in  his 
direct  examination,   and   again   three   times   in 


2 1 

his  cross-examination,  that  he  never  saw  Flagg 
in  his  life  until  the  3  I  st  of  May,  1894." 

When  it  comes  to  perjury  there  may  be 
those  in  the  "department"  who  can  equal 
Barney  McConville,  the  ex-truck  driver,  but 
they  cannot  beat  him. 

But  what  does  a  newspaper  reporter  or 
"space-writer"  care  for  justice?  All  indict- 
ments look  alike  to  them.  So  long  as  it  was 
an  indictment  it  was  news.  News  to  a  "space- 
writer"  means  money  and  in  head-line  letters 
it  was  announced  to  the  public  "Flagg  is 
indicted."  How,  and  by  what  means, 
whether  by  ex-parte  evidence,  whether  by  per- 
jured testimony  or  honest  testimony,  they  did 
not  state,  and  did  not  care. 

I  quote  from  my  lawyer's  opening  address: 

"The  constitutional  right  of  every  defend- 
ant— of  every  man  charged  with  crime — is 
that  he  shall  meet  his  accusers  face  to  face; 
that  he  shall  have  the  right  to  cross-examine 
and  examine  the  witnesses  against  him.  But 
on  the  25th  day  of  May,  1894,  in  secret,  with- 
out notice  to  this  defendant,  without  giving 
him  an  opportunity  to  defend  himself,  two 
police  officers  get  access  to  the  Grand  Jury. 
You  have  preliminary  magistrates.  The  law 
says  that  every  man  who  is  arrested  is  entitled 
to  an  examination.  This  is  his  constitutional 
right  under  the  statute,  and  of  this  right,  this 
defendent,  Jared  Flagg,  was  robbed." 

The  papers  made  no  mention  of  this  act  of 
thievery.  They  informed  the  public  an  indict- 
ment had  been  handed  down  and  this  was 
sufficient  to  make  my  business,  social  and  fair 
weather  acquaintances,  and  many  of  my 
relatives,  look  upon  me  askance.  Had  they 
known  the  truth  they  might  have  regarded  the 
matter  differently,  but  barring  Donohue  and 
McConville  no  one  knew  the  truth.      No  one  at 


22 

that  time  knew  the  indictment  was  putrid  ex- 
cept these  two.  They  also  knew  if  they 
attempted  to  press  it  for  trial  they  would  be 
jailed  as  perjurers.  As  a  matter  of  fact  it 
never  was  and  never  will  be  tried;  it  w^as  only 
a  trick  to  blight  my  reputation  and  place  me 
at  their  mercy. 

It  is  difficult  to  comprehend  the  depravity 
which  exists  in  the  police  department.  We 
clothe  our  officers  with  power  which  the  cor- 
rupt ones  abuse.  We  enact  laws  relating  to 
prostitution  of  no  value  to  us,  but  invaluable 
to  them  for  blackmailing  purposes.  Is  it  sur- 
prising, therefore,  that  these  uniformed  thieves 
became  solicitous  as  to  the  chastity  of  my 
tenants? 

With  this  indictment  for  a  club  they  now 
could  demonstrate  the  terror  of  my  position 
which  they  did  by  having  me  arrested,  not  as 
they  ordinarily  arrest  one  charged  with  a  mis- 
demeanor (as  I  was)  but  as  a  felon  or  some 
treacherous  desperado. 

A  misdemeanor  is  not  a  crime.  If  a  person 
throws  paper  on  the  side-walk,  if  he  smokes  in 
a  public  conveyance  or  if  he  raises  his  voice 
he  commits  a  misdemeanor;  or  if  he  happens 
to  have  a  tenant  who  sings  too  loudly  (al- 
though he  may  know  nothing  of  it  at  the  time) 
he,  as  landlord,  can  be  charged  with  a  miis- 
demeanor  for  "maintaining  a  nuisance"  and 
convicted;  the  extreme  penalty  for  which  is  a 
fine  of  five  hundred  dollars  and  imprisonment 
for  one  year  in  the  county  jail.  This  is  the 
"heinous    crime"    of    which    I    was    convicted. 

The  endorsement  on  the  indictment  upon 
which  I  was  tried  reads,  "Guilty  on  second 
count  for  maintaining  a  nuisance;"  and  this 
was  the  only  thing  I  ever  weis  convicted  of, 
exactly  this  and  nothing  more  as  the  records 
prove. 

And    yet,    before    this    conviction    Officers 


23 

Rohrig  and  McConville  appeared  in  my  office, 
242  West  23rd  Street,  and  the  first  thing  I 
knew  I  was  handcuffed  to  them  and  being 
marched  through  the  streets  followed  by  a 
small  army  of  people.  Did  they  shackle  me 
with  irons  because  they  were  fearful  1  might 
run  away,  or  to  add  to  my  abasement  in 
furtherance  of  their  threat  that  I  could  "take 
the  consequences"  for  refusing  to  pay  tribute 
to  Donohue? 

No  person  who  has  not  been  subjected  to 
such  an  ordeal  can  realize  what  it  means  to  be 
dragged  through  the  streets  in  this  manner. 
One  may  read,  guess,  imagine,  but  he  cannot 
comprehend  all  a  person  suffers.  The  ignominy, 
odium  and  scandal,  is  enough  to  fill  any  self- 
respecting  person  with  abhorrence.  I  respect- 
ed myself  but  was  more  determined  than  ever 
not  to  submit  to  their  blackmailing  demands. 
So.  in  a  few  days  they  had  me  indicted  again 
and  again  threw  me  into  a  cell;  and  again  in- 
dicted me — and  again  and  again.  Five  in- 
dictments— five  counts  in  each — twenty-five 
"cooked  up"  complaints,  all  secured  by  the 
same  witnesses  and  on  the  same  bogus  charges, 
with  bail  bonds  running  high  into  the  thous- 
ands. 

Then  it  was  that  the  newspapers  issued 
"extras,"  and  that  people   "said  things." 

"He  must  be  innately  wicked,  a  dangerous 
character.  And  only  to  think" — to  repeat 
the  words  of  Katharina — our  old  nurse,  who 
has  lived  in  the  family  forty-eight  years — "he 
was  such  a  nice  boy,  so  devout.  My!  My  I 
had  I  not  seen  it  with  my  own  eyes  in  the 
papers,  I  would  not  have  believed  it;"  etc. 

And  my  every  day  acquaintances,  some  of 
whom  forgot  we  were  acquainted,  also  "said 
things."  "We  know  the  papers  can  distort 
the  truth — can  make  white  appear  black — can 


24 

leave  out,  add  to,  rip  a  man  up  the  back  and 
blast  his  good  name  in  a  day — ^we  know  all 
this  but  that  is  not  the  question;  they  are 
pounding  him;  can  we  afFord  to  mix  in?  Can 
we  afford  to  be  seen  in  his  company?  If  we 
meet  him  we  will  treat  him  with  superficial 
politeness  but  that  will  be  all."  And  for 
years  thereafter  that  was  all. 

Men  strive  to  retain  social  position;  it  is 
right  they  should,  therefore,  I  felt  a  delicacy 
in  intruding  my  presence  upon  them  and  so 
held  aloof;  not  that  I  was  embittered;  I  know 
how  inclined  we  are  to  jump  to  conclusions 
and  how  frequently  we  jump  in  the  wrong 
direction. 

Those  who  turned  their  backs  were  ignorant 
of  the  facts;  had  heard  only  one  side  and  that, 
not  my  side.  I  wanted  my  side  heard  but  the 
police  did  not.  I  had  pleaded  "Not  Guilty," 
which  was  equivalent  to  challenging  them  to 
confront  me  in  a  court  of  law. 

Eight  times  I  appealed  to  the  District  At- 
torney to  be  brought  to  trial  that  I  might  vindi- 
cate my  name. 

Those  who  did  not  look  below  the  surface 
regarded  me  with  suspicion.  But  this  did  not 
worry  the  police,  who  were  inflexible  in  their 
determination  not  to  have  my  case  go  to  tried. 
If  anything  will  make  a  blackmailing  police- 
man wince  it  is  a  jury.  He  recoils  from  a 
jury  trial  as  the  "Devil  would  from  holy 
water" — knowing  his  methods  are  not  popular 
with  the  people.  Therefore,  they  decided  to 
settle  their  little  differences  with  me  out  of 
court  and  in  their  own  way. 

A  meeting  to  this  effect  was  held  in  the 
private  office  of  the  St.  James  Hotel,  at  the 
time  located  on  Broadway,  corner  of  Twenty- 
sixth  Street. 

I  quote  from  my  lawyer's  summing  up :  R.  S. 


25 

Davenport  a  discharged  janitor  of  Mr.  Flagg 
makes  affidavit:-  *I  met  Captains  Donohue  and 
Price  by  appointment  at  the  private  office 
in  the  St.  James  Hotel,  January  1  5,  1895;  and 
Donohue  told  me  if  I  would  go  to  his  lawyer 
and  make  affidavit  that  the  flat  houses,  225 
and  227  West  Eighteenth  Street  were  dis- 
orderly and  that  Flagg  was  aware  they  were 
being  used  for  such  purposes  his  lawyer  would 
make  it  to  my  interest.' 

Davenport  was  not  averse  to  selling  him- 
self, and  after  having  sold  himself  to  the 
police  offered  himself  to  me.  He  told  mic  that 
Captain  Price  said:-  "To  keep  indictirg  and 
arresting  Flagg  is  equivalent  to  sticking  pin* 
in  a  rhinoceros;  no  visible  effect." 

According  to  his  opinion  that  portion  of 
my  anatomy  designated  by  them  as  hide  wa« 
too  thick,  and  they  finally  resolved  if  ever  I 
were  to  be  brought  to  terms  they  must  change 
tactics  and  they  did.  They  changed  them 
that  very  day — the  day  of  the  secret  conclave 
held  in  the  little  back  room — the  little  private 
office  of  the  St.  James  Hotel,  January  1 5, 
1895. 


26 


CHAPTER  II 

Pandemonium  means  Hell,  and  from  that 
time,  January  15,  1  895,  pandemonium  reigned 
supreme  in  the  so-called  "Flagg  Flats." 

In  this  chapter  I  shall  say  something  about 
"stool-pigeons,"  and  that  those  unfamiliar  with 
the  term  may  know  the  kind  of  bird  a  "stool- 
pigeon"  is  I  shall  define  him.  A  "stool- 
pigeon"  is  a  "ward-heeler,"  a  thug,  a  low 
down  person  who  for  a  consideration  will  do 
any  "dirty  work"  to  accommodate  the  police. 

Immediately  after  the  St.  James  Hotel 
meeting  the  police  employed  gangs  of  these 
thugs  to  invade  my  vacant  flats  and  smash 
dishes,  break  mirrors  and  rip  up  with  sharp 
knives  parlor  furniture,  cane-seated  dining 
chEiirs,  bed  spreads,  portieres,  lace  curtains, 
carpets,  rugs,  mattresses  and  pillows.  Also 
to  throw  tables,  chairs,  dressers,  chiffoniers, 
pictures  and  ice  boxes  down  the  air  shafts. 
But  this  was  not  all,  water  pipes  were  cut, 
flooding  the  floors  and  ruining  ceilings.  Axes 
■were  used  in  demolishing  the  walls  and  en- 
ameled bathtubs.  In  my  Sixteenth  and 
Seventeenth  Street  buildings,  also  at  225  and 
227  West  Eighteenth  Street,  and  1  09  and  111 
West  Thirty-third  Street,  access  to  the  toilets 
could  be  had  from  the  main  halls,  and  eighty 
of  these  expensive  china  bowls  were  broken 
with  hammers  in  one  night. 

Up-town,  down-town,  on  the  Elast  Side  and 
the  West  Side,  locks  were  broken,  doors  pried 
open,  and  furniture  and  ornaments  which  cost 


27 

me  thousands  were  stolen  or  destroyed  by 
these  loafers  who  worked  under  the  direction 
and  protection  and  in  the  presence  of  our  uni- 
formed "guardians  of  the  peace." 

It  is  difficult  for  the  unsophisticated  to 
realize  how  such  things  can  happen  in  a  civi- 
lized country  but  according  to  the  papers  of 
April  5,  1910,  it  is  still  going  on.  To  quote 
the  New  York  World:  "The  Mayor  (meaning 
Mayor  Wm.  J.  Gaynor)  "then  proceeded  to 
1 09  Mulberry  Street,  and  entered  the  rooms 
on  the  second  floor  where  he  found  all  the 
furniture  smashed  and  even  the  bottoms  of 
the  chairs  torn  out.  The  officer  told  the  Mayor 
that  everything  had  been  destroyed  during  the 
recent  police  raid." 

This  kind  of  work  coupled  with  the  "third 
degree"  is  what  the  police  call  demonstrating 
the  majesty  of  the  law. 

Once  after  several  of  my  flats  had  been 
wrecked  I  was,  without  a  complaint  having 
been  made,  taken  by  Detective  McConville  to 
the  West  Twentieth  Street  station  house  and 
escorted  one  flight  up  to  Captain  Donohue's 
private  bedroom.  The  Captain  was  waiting 
and  requested  me  to  take  a  seat.  For  a  few 
moments  he  eyed  me  quizzically,  and  then 
said,  "Well!  how  do  you  like  it?" 

My  reply  although  printable  will  detract 
nothing  from  the  narrative  if  omitted.  Suffice 
it  to  say  no  compromise  was  affected  and  the 
reign  of  terror  continued.  Every  building  I 
had,  in  every  part  of  the  city,  was  infested 
not  only  by  "stool-pigeons"  but  by  officers  in 
citizens'  attire,  "fly-cops"  they  are  called,  with 
orders  to  "bull-doze"  old  tenants  out  and 
prevent  new  ones  from  entering. 

Hundreds  vacated,  the  most  desirable  ten- 
ants  were    the   first   to    leave.      Naturally   this 


2S 

exodus  impaired  my  income;  with  large  pay- 
ments to  make,  and  larger  ones  coming  due, 
I  was  in  dire  straits. 

I  quote  from  my  lawyer's  summing  up:- 
"Flagg's  tenants  are  not  only  harrassed  by 
'stool-pigeons*  but  police  detectives.  McCon- 
ville,  Rohrfg,  Cohn,  Zimmerman  and  others 
have,  according  to  their  own  testimony,  in- 
fested his  premises  for  months." 

The  "stool-pigeons"  carried  skeleton  keys 
and  could  open  a  door  in  the  "twinkling  of  an 
eye."  They  would  not  only  go  from  one 
flat  to  another  to  plunder  and  steal,  but  would 
occasionally  back  up  a  truck,  and  cart  a  load 
of  furniture  away  in  a  night. 

John  Dowd,  a  night  watchman  employed 
by  me  once  caught  four  "stool-pigeons  '  in  the 
act  of  loading  a  truck  and  threatened  to  shoot 
them  if  they  did  not  replace  the  furniture. 
Two  "plain  clothes  men"  (policemen  in  citi- 
zens' attire)  sneaked  up  behind,  overpowered 
him,  and  with  the  aid  of  their  accomplices — 
the  thieves  about  to  make  away  with  my  furni- 
ture—clubbed him  to  a  pulp.  On  the  West 
Twentieth  Street  Police  Station  blotter,  op- 
posite his  name,  are  v/ritten  the  words, 
"Resisted  arrest."  According  to  the  New 
York  American"  of  January  17,  1915,  these 
beatings  are  still  being  administered  and 
police  detectives  are  still  offering  the  same 
excuse — "resisted  arrest." 

When  the  police  murder  an  innocent  man 
these  are  the  two  words  that  let  them  "down 
and  out."  The  law  accords  them  the  privi- 
lege of  killing  any  person  who  resists  arrest, 
and  they  assume  the  privilege  of  accusing  any 
person  of  this  offense  whom  they  accidentally 
or  purposely  kill. 

John  Dowd  did  not  die  that  night,  but  did 
die  shortly  thereafter. 


29 

Skeleton  keys  were  also  used  by  the  police 
and  their  "stool-pigeons"  when  in  the  small 
hours  of  the  night  they  entered  my  unoccupied 
flats  with  their  prostitutes.  It  was  nothing  un- 
usual in  those  days  on  arriving  at  my  office 
to  be  informed  that  in  such-and-such  a  build- 
ing drunken  policemen  had  caroused  half  the 
night  with  women  whom  they  had  brought  in 
from  the  street. 

On  one  occasion  while  passing  from  room 
to  room  in  showing  what  I  supposed  was  an 
unoccupied  flat  to  a  prospective  tenant,  she 
(the  prospective  tenant)  suddenly  "let  out" 
a  most  unearthly  scream  and  dashed  out  of 
the  building  shouting,  "Police!  Police!  There 
was  no  necessity  for  calling  an  officer  as  there 
was  already  one  in  the  flat  and  in  bed. 

At  another  time  (also  in  broad  daylight) 
tv/o  policemen  and  a  woman  slipped  in 
through  the  basement  door  of  my  buildinSt 
1  2  3  West  Fifty-sixth  Street  and  although  they 
ran  into  the  arms  of  my  janitress  they  brushed 
her  aside  and  took  possession  of  a  flat.  Upon 
receiving  this  information  I  communicated 
with  Police  Headquarters  and  an  officer  wa» 
detailed  to  investigate.  Together  we  hurried 
to  the  flat  and  there  they  were  "big  as  life," 
with  their  helmets  off,  and  "loading  up"  with 
whiskey.  They  were  not  so  heavily  loaded 
as  to  be  incapable  of  recognizing  their  brother 
officer  —  the  "investigator"  —  and  w^ithout 
ceremony  passed  him  the  bottle.  With  head 
back,  eyes  closed,  he  smacked  his  lips  and 
said,  "Hot  stuff!"  First  there  were  two,  then 
three,  and  had  I  complained  again  there  might 
have  been  four.      So  what  was  the  use? 

Were  I  to  live  that  part  of  my  life  over  I 
would,  on  the  first  demand,  throw  up  my  hands 
and  without  a  whimper  let  them  rob  me. 
Under  the  law  it  is  as  much  a  crime  to  jjive  as 


30 

to  accept  a  bribe;  yet  had  I  ignored  this  law 
and  parted  with  my  money  I  would  not  have 
parted  with  my  good  name.  When  I  think  of 
the  "mud"  thrown  at  me  because  I  respected 
the  law  and  think  how  difficult  the  "going"  has 
been  in  this  "mud"  and  how  it  has  bespattered 
those  near  to  me,  I  am  frank  to  admit  I  would 
hesitate  a  long  time  before  again  sacrificing 
the  esteem  of  my  fellow  beings  upon  the  altar 
of  principal.  Self-respect  is  a  poor  substitute 
for  the  respect  of  others.  We  may  say  we 
care  nothing  for  the  opinion  of  those  who 
condemn  without  investigating  but  we  do  care. 
This  talk  of  "living  down"  a  bad  reputation  it 
often  a  delusion  and  a  snare.  We  have  too 
many  business  and  social  functions  to  per- 
form, and  too  many  troubles  of  our  own  to 
waste  time  in  investigating  others.  Yet  if  an- 
other is  being  maligned  we  find  time  to  listen; 
and  as  we  are  more  prone  to  believe  evil  than 
good  many  believe  evil  of  me.  Believe  but 
do  not  know,  and  when  asked  why  can  advance 
no  reason;  but  they  can  talk,  and  this  is  how 
they  talk:-  "Flagg?  What  Flagg — Jared  Oh  I 
Excuse  me.  He  never  wronged  me.  No!  not 
me,  nor  any  person  with  whom  I  am  acquaint- 
ed; but  I  have  heard  and  read  so  much.  No, 
I  cannot  recall  just  what,  but  have  seen  hie 
name  in  print  and  know  that  he  had  trouble 
with  the  police,  etc.,  etc." 

The  police  had  trouble  with  me  and  I  had 
trouble  with  them — some  of  them.  Therefore, 
the  question  may  arise  why  I  remained  in  the 
flat  business.  Why  not  sell  out  and  be  rid  of 
such  men — men  willing  to  violate  their  oath 
of  office  for  personal  gain.  But  I  could  not; 
to  sell  meant  ruination.  A  person  who  has 
saved  a  little  strives  as  hard  not  to  lose  it  ac 
the  person  who  has  accumulated  millions.  It 
is  his  all.      My  all  was  invested  in  flat  property. 


31 

but  so  heavily  encumbered  that  to  force  a  sale 
would  result  in  losing  all.  This  was  my  posi- 
tion and  the  police  appreciating  my  dilemma 
and  to  still  further  hamper  me  threatened  with 
arrest  every  owner  from  whom  I  leased  a  flat 
if  he  failed  to  dispossess  me.  There  were 
about  one  hundred  of  these  odd  flats  and 
every  owner  with  the  exception  of  Mr.  Reeder 
dispossessed  me. 

These  were  squally  times  and  it  seemed  only 
a  question  of  time  before  my  own  bed  would 
be  placed  on  the  sidewalk.  Yet,  in  justice  to 
my  fellow  beings,  I  must  confess  there  never 
was  a  time — not  even  when  things  looked 
darkest — not  even  when  it  seemed  as  if  the 
whole  world  were  going  to  turn  against  me — 
there  never  was  a  time  that  someone — a 
woman — a  man — someone — did  not  come 
forward — did  not  take  me  by  the  hand  and 
display  traits  so  noble  that  I  could  not  and 
did  not  for  one  moment  lose  confidence  in 
mankind. 

Mr.  Reeder  took  me  by  the  hand  and  said: 
"I  shall  not  dispossess  you." 

Gilbert  Totten  Reeder  stands  high:  and  to 
Captain  Pickett,  of  the  West  Thirtieth  Street 
police  station  he  said,  "Go  ahead  and  arrestl" 
But  Pickett  failed  to  make  good  his  bluff. 
Other  captains  however  bulldozed  my  other 
landlords.  They  also  warned  every  janitor, 
clerk  and  mechanic  under  penalty  of  being 
sent  to  the  "Island"  to  quit  my  employ.  They 
quit — all  quit — with  the  exception  of  two, 
James  Irby  and  William  Young.  They  were 
determined  to  stand  by  until  the  "last  gun  was 
fired."  It  was  "fired."  James  was  put  in  a 
cell  in  the  West  Twentieth  Street  station  house 
and  clubbed  almost  to  death,  and  William 
vanished  that  same  night.  We  have  our  ideas 
as  to  what  happened  to  him  but  no  evidence. 


32 

Almost  ten  years  have  passed  and  I  am  told 
by  his  wife  that  she  has  not  seen  or  heard 
from  him. 

Every  person  in  any  manner  connected  with 
my  buildings  was  arrested  or  threatened  with 
arrest,  and  as  for  myself,  I  had  been  arrested 
so  many  times  I  was  beginning  to  get  accustom- 
ed to  it.  Once  in  writing  to  my  father  I  ex- 
pressed the  opinion  that  the  worst  was  over 
as  I  had  not  been  arrested  for  four  days.  But 
I  was  mistaken — the  worst  was  to  come. 

"Revenge  is  sweet" — they  say — but  I  think 
the  spirit  of  retaliation,  this  desire  to  get  even 
not  only  redounds  to  the  detriment  of  the 
malicious  person  but  draws  him  deeper  into 
the  mire.  A  man  who  has  the  power  and  yet 
refrains  from  injuring  those  who  have  injured 
him  is  a  great  man,  worthy  the  esteem  of  all 
men,  but  unfortunately  we  are  not  all  great, 
"and  when  the  tension  of  my  reason  was  re- 
laxed then  the  low,  the  brute,  the  animal  in- 
stinct, itching  to  get  at  them  was  in  me. 

They — the  police — would  not  "come  out  in 
the  open"  and  fight,  so  I  proposed  to  drag 
them  out. 

If  a  police  captain  and  detective  without 
cause  could  have  me  indicted  and  ruined  I  felt 
that  with  cause  I  could  have  them  indicted  and 
"broke."  While  "boiling  over"  with  thi« 
spirit  of  revenge  I  communicated  with  the 
Grand  Jury,  and  asked  permission  to  appear 
before  that  honorable  body. 

A  prisoner  calls  his  lawyer  his  "mouthpiece.  ' 
At  the  time  I  was  a  prisoner  out  on  bail  and 
wanted  to  take  my  lawyer  into  the  Grand  Jury 
room,  but  they,  the  jurors,  would  not  stand 
for  it.  If  I  had  anything  to  say  I  could  go  in 
alone,  otherwise  remain  out. 

No  person,  unless  he  enjoys  hearing  himself 
talk,  likes  the  idea  of  entertaining  twenty-five 


3J 

*  jurors  for  an  hour  or  so,  but  as  it  was  the  onljr 
way  I  could  wreak  vengeance  I  "braced  up" 
and  went  in  alone.  The  foreman  requested 
me  to  be  as  brief  as  possible  as  it  was  past  the 
closing  hour.  This  tended  to  disconcert  me. 
Mine  was  too  long  a  tale,  fraught  with  too 
many  wrongs  to  skim  over  lightly,  and  I  asked 
if  I  could  appear  before  them  the  following^ 
miorning.  "No,"  I  was  to  say  what  I  had  to 
say  then  or  not  at  all. 

The  jurors  were  seated  at  a  long  table  and 
I  was  told  to  take  a  seat  at  the  far  end;  but  1 
stood  and  without  "beating  about  the  bush" 
proceeded  to  tell  my  story.  Five  minutes — 
ten  minutes — and  I  kept  talking,  but  they  paid 
little  attention;  most  of  them  were  examining 
documents  and  whispering  to  each  other.  A 
few  were  gazing  at  the  ceiling.  One  had  his 
watch  on  the  table,  and  kept  looking  at  it. 
Everything  was  cold  and  formal,  and  for  all 
the  progress  I  was  making  I  might  as  well  have 
been  soliloquizing.  Talking  under  such  cir- 
cumstances is  depressing,  yet  I  had  somethingr 
to  say  and  was  saying  it.  Step  by  step  I  was 
unfolding  my  list  of  tribulations.  Presently 
two  jurors  at  the  other  end  of  the  table  ap- 
peared interested,  at  least  were  looking  at  me, 
so  I  directed  my  statements  to  them.  Then 
another  excused  himself  for  interrupting  and 
requested  that  I  repeat  a  statement.  This  oc- 
currence put  me  more  at  ease,  and  when  the 
foreman  asked  me  to  speak  louder  I  accom- 
modated him.  By  degrees  others  became  in- 
terested and  I  talked  to  them  also.  At  last 
the  man  with  the  watch  put  it  in  his  pocket. 
This  was  encouraging,  and  I  "warmed  up"  to 
my  subject.  And  when  he  turned  in  his  chair, 
placed  his  hand  to  his  ear  and  leaned  forward, 
I  took  pains  that  he  not  only  heard  every  word 
I  uttered  but  appreciated  its  meaning.      I  told 


34 

him  and  I  told  them  how  in  five  years  I  had 
built  up  a  large  business;  how  careful  I  had 
been  to  safeguard  it,  how  watchful,  how 
anxious  to  hold  my  tenants;  how  disastrous  it 
would  have  been  if  I  had  permitted  disorderly 
persons  to  gain  access  to  my  flats.  I  told  how 
the  captains  had,  despite  the  good  character 
of  my  tenants,  predetermined  to  levy  blackmail 
on  me,  how  they  with  one  accord  had  met 
and  decided  to  force  me  to  pay  to  each 
a  stipulated  sum,  ranging  from  one  hun- 
dred to  three  hundred  dollars  per  month  ac- 
cording to  the  number  of  buildings  owned  or 
leeised  by  me  in  their  respective  precincts.  I 
told  how  they  had  approached  me;  how  they 
had  each  prepared  a  carefully  figured  memo- 
randum giving  the  rent  derived  from  each  flat 
and  the  profit  to  me  per  week  and  per  month; 
and  how  they  had  told  me  that  in  my  case 
they  proposed  to  be  liberal,  were  going  to  per- 
mit me  to  retain  half  of  my  money,  half  of 
my  own  profits.  In  other  words,  in  consider- 
ation of  supplying  the  capital  and  doing  the 
work,  I  could  keep  for  myself  half  of  what  1 
made,  provided  I,  in  consideration  of  not  being 
molested,  passed  over  in  bills,  not  checks,  the 
other  half.  I  told  how  I  had  declined  to  be 
a  party  to  such  underhanded  proceedings,  and 
how  they  had  given  me  two  days  in  which 
to  consider  the  matter,  and  how  on  the  third 
day  I  had  been  arrested  by  Officer  McConville 
and  his  "side  partner".  I  also  told  how  I 
had  subsequently  called  on  Dr.  Parkhurst,  hoW 
he  had  appointed  Arthur  F.  Dennett,  Superin- 
tendent of  the  Society  for  the  Prevention  of 
Crime,  to  investigate — to  personally  call  on  all 
my  tenants — and  that  the  report  was  so  sat- 
isfactory that  Dr.  Parkhurst  called  at  my  office, 
and  offered  me  his  support.  I  told  how  I 
had  called  on  Mr.  Roosevelt,  who  at  the  timie 


35 

was  President  of  the  Police  Board  of  New 
York  City,  how  he  had  appointed  Detective 
Sergeant  Mason  (one  of  the  few  members 
of  the  force  in  whom  he  had  confidence)  to 
make  an  investigation  of  my  flats;  and  how, 
after  reading  Mason's  report,  he  (Roosevelt) 
also  had  volunteered  to  stand  back  of  me  and 
do  everything  in  his  power  to  stop  further  per- 
secution. I  told  of  my  interview  with  Re- 
corder Goff,  and  how  he  had  advised  me  to 
"go  over  the  head"  of  District  Attorney  Fel- 
lows and  ask  permission  to  appear  before  the 
Grand  Jury.  I  told  them  all  this,  and  more, 
and  they,  listened,  listened  attentively;  there 
was  no  longer  any  whispering,  any  reading  of 
documents;  no  longer  any  looking  at  the  ceil- 
ing. Every  man  in  that  room  was  looking 
straight  at  me,  and  I  could  feel  they  were 
"with  me";  that  they  knew  I  was  speaking  the 
truth;  and  after  having  detained  them  long 
past  their  closing  hour,  I  thanked  them  for 
their  courtesy  and  retired. 

This  Grand  Jury  of  which  Francis  H.  Leg- 
gett,  the  wholesale  groceryman,  was  foreman, 
indicted  Police  Captains  J.  J.  Donohue,  and 
James  K.  Price  and  Police  Detective  Henry 
W.  Schill. 

The  real  way  "to  get  even"  is  to  forget,  but, 
not  knowing  this  then,  I  thought  only  of  ven- 
geance. Revenge  was  what  I  wanted  and  I 
got  it — furthermore,  got  all  the  trimmings  that 
go  with  it.  To  say  I  was  "trimmed"  does 
not  adequately  express  what  they  did  to  me. 

As  previously  stated,  the  worst  was  to  come, 
and  it  came  immediately  after  these  officers 
(owing  to  the  indictments)  had  been  suspended 
from  the  "department".  Up  to  this  time  I 
had  had  a  few  captains  and  a  score  or  two  of 
detectives  arrayed  against  me;  but  now  al- 
most a  battalion,  headed  by  McConville  and 


36 

Acting  Captain  Lynch  who  succeeded  Captain 
Donohue,  were  lined  up  against  me  and  with- 
out a  semblance  of  legal  evidence  swooped 
down  on  my  flats  like  an  avalanche,  broke  open 
doors  and  cleaned  out  every  one. 

"Impossible,  preposterous,  it  could  not  be 
done — it  would  be  illegal — the  police  would 
not  dare  to  smash  doors  and  raid  flats  v/ithout 
evidence." 

When  I  hear  expressions  of  this  kind  I  think 
of  the  lawyer  who  told  his  client  that  it  would 
be  unlawful  to  lock  him  up,  that  it  could  not 
be  done.  "Yes,"  said  his  client,  speaking 
from  behind  the  bp  rs  "but  I  am  here."  And 
so  it  was  with  my  tenants — they  were  there — 
behind   the  bars. 

Hard  working  young  women  employed  in 
department  stores  and  living  in  my  tenement 
flats  were  carried  off  by  the  dozen  in  patrol 
wagons  for  the  purpose  of  enabling  the  police 
to  illegally  make  out  a  seemingly  legal  case 
against  me. 

To  substantiate  this  I  could  publish  a  port- 
folio full  of  affidavits  but  a  copy  of  one  will 
suffice : 

City  and  County  of  the  State  of  New  York — 
Louise  Fink,  being  duly  sworn,  deposes  and 
says  that  on  the  8th  day  of  October,  1894, 
in  the  East  Thirty-fifth  Street  Station-house, 
about  7:30  in  the  evening,  she  heard  the 
Captain  of  Police  in  charge  of  such  precinct 
make  use  of  and  say  the  following  words,  or 
words  to  the  effect  to  certain  prisoners  in 
the  said  station-house  bearing  the  names  of 
Addie  Smith,  Josephine  Merrit  and  Lizzie 
Gregory,  to  wit: — "There  is  no  occasion  to 
carry  on  and  cry  so,  girls,  for  if  you  set 
up   no   defense   and   plead   guilty   and   swear 


37 

Flagg  knew  you  were  using  his  flats  for 
immoral  purposes,  we  will  let  you  down 
light  to-morrow  morning  at  Special  Ses- 
sions. It  is  not  you  that  we  want  to  get 
•  the  dead  wood  on  but  Flagg". 
LOUISE  FINK. 
Sworn  to  before  me  on  this,  1 2th  day  of 
October,     1894. 

GEORGE  W.  MINOR 
Commissioner  of  Deeds. 

Maggie  Smith  and  Anna  Chapman,  em- 
ployed in  Hearns  Fourteenth  Street  dry  goods 
store,  who  were  also  in  the  station  house  at 
the  time,  swore  to  the  same  fact  before  the 
same  notary. 

The  police  not  only  made  these  unlawful 
raids  but  raided  flats  over  which  I  had  ab- 
solutely no  control. 

To  dispossess  a  tenant  a  landlord  is  com- 
pelled to  employ  a  city  marshal.  The  ten- 
ant is  allowed  three  days  in  which  to  vacate 
or  appear  in  Court  to  show  cause  why  he 
should  not  be  evicted.  If  he  sets  up  any  ex- 
cuse the  Judge  usually  extends  the  time.  It 
is  not  the  landlord  but  the  Judge  who  names 
the  day  on  which  the  tenant  must  vacate.  Un- 
til that  time  the  landlord's  hands,  figuratively 
speaking  are  tied;  and,  if  law-abiding,  he  will 
obey  the  law.  I  am  a  law-abiding  citizen  and 
to  exemplify  how  the  police  took  advantage 
of  this  fact  it  is  only  necessary  to  quote  from 
the  Court  Records: — 

District  Attorney: — "Did  Captain  Lynch 
warn  you  that  the  building,  225  West  18th 
Street,    was    being    used    for    disorderly    pur- 


poses 


■>" 


Flagg: — "Yes." 

District  Attorney: — "Did  he  on  May  29th, 
1895,  notify  you  in  writing  to  abate  the  nuis- 
ance?" 

Flagg: — "Yes.      And   the   next   day  I   noti- 


38 

fied  him  in  writing  that  I  had  instructed  City 
Marshal  James  M.  Gano  to  dispossess  my  ten- 
ants, although  far  from  satisfied  that  they  were 
violating  any  law. 

District  Attorney: — "When  you  heard  them 
plead  guilty  after  they  were  raided  were  you 
satisfied?" 

Flagg: — "No." 

District  Attorney: — "No?" 

Flagg: — "No." 

District  Attorney: — "Well,  tell  us  Mr. 
Flagg,  how  many  of  your  tenants  were  raided 
during  June,  1895,  and  how  many  pleaded 
guilty  and  were  fined?" 

Flagg  (to  judge)  : — "May  I  explain  under 
what  conditions  these  raids  were  made?" 

District  Attorney: — "I  object." 

Judge: — "Objection  sustained." 

Flagg  (to  the  jury): — "Do  you  want  to 
get  at  the  truth  of  this  matter?" 

District  Attorney: — "I  move  to  have  that 
remark  striken  from  the  records." 

Judge    (to    court   stenographer)  : —    "Strike 
it  out." 
District  Attorney: — "Answer  my  question." 

Judge: — "Answer  his  question." 

Flagg: — "McConville  told  them  if  they 
would  plead  guilty  and  pay  a  small  fine  they 
would  be  discharged." 

District  Attorney: — "I  move,  your  Honor, 
to  have  that  crossed  from  the  records." 

A  Juryman: — "I  would  like  to  have  the 
facts." 

Flagg  (to  Judge)  : — "May  I  give  the  facts 
to  the  jury?" 

District  Attorney: — "I  object." 

Flagg: — "Naturally,   you   object." 

Judge  (to  Flagg)  : — Any  more  of  this  and 
I  shall  fine  you  for  contempt." 

Flagg  (to  jury)  : — "City  Marshall  Gano" — 


39 

District   Attorney: — "I   object!      object!  I" 

Judge: — "Objection  overruled." 

Flagg  (to  jury)  : — "City  Marshall  Gano  noti- 
fied Captain  Lynch,  June  3d,  1895,  that  at 
my  request  he  had  served  dispossess  papers 
on  eight  tenants  in  the  building  225  West 
1  8th  Street  and  that  Judge  Joseph  H.  Steiner 
of  the  Eighth  District  Court  had  given  the  ten- 
ants until  June  10th,  1895,  to  vacate.  They 
were  therefore  no  longer  under  my  jurisdic- 
tion. I  had  no  legal  right  to  put  them  out. 
And  Captain  Lynch  of  the  Sixteenth  Precinct 
knew  it;  even  knew  I  was  to  receive  no  rent, 
and  yet,  during  this  extension  of  time,  June 
3d  to  June  10th,  1895,  granted  by  Judge 
Steiner,  he.  Lynch,  raided  these  tenants  who 
in  reality  and  legally  were  no  longer  my  ten- 
ants and  arrested  me.  They  told  me  that 
McConville  had  told  them  if  they  would  plead 
guilty  and  swear  I  knew  they  were  using  my 
flats  for  immoral  purposes  they  would  be  dis- 
charged. Three  did  plead  guilty,  and  were 
discharged  in  the  Jefferson  Market  Police 
Court.  The  remaining  five  who  refused  to 
commit  perjury  were  in  jail  four  days  and  then 
discharged  as  there  was  no  evidence  against 
them.  I  also  was  discharged  in  the  Special 
Sessions  Court." 

This  is  the  only  case  on  record  where  three 
"inmates"  of  an  alleged  disorderly  house  paid 
fines  because  they  could  be  coerced  into  swear- 
ing falsely  and  the  "keeper"  and  five  other 
"inmates"  of  the  same  house,  on  identically 
the  same  evidence  honorably  discharged  be- 
cause they  could  not  be  coerced  into  swearing 
falsely. 

No  threat,  cell,  or  promise  of  immunity 
could  make  me  acknowledge  1  was  guilty  when 
not  guilty.  But,  it  was  to  be  expected  that 
out  of  the  great  number  of  illegally  arrested 


40 

young  women  some  would  swear  to  anything 
to  regain  their  freedom. 

Before,  during  and  after  my  trial  the  animus 
evinced  by  Barney  McConville,  the  ex-truck 
driver,  was  beyond  belief. 

I  shall  never  forget  a  certain  afternoon 
when  walking  to  the  West  Twentieth  Street 
station  house  with  him  and  officer  Rohrig. 
My  right  wrist  was  chained  to  Rohrig  and  a* 
we  turned  the  corner  of  1 8th  Street  and 
Seventh  Avenue  McConville  said:  "I  wish  to 
God  I  was  now  leading  you  to  the  'chair'  and 
Weis  to  be  the  one  to  touch  the  button  that 
would  send  you  to  Hell" — accompanying  this 
remark  with  an  unprintable  oath. 

Shortly  after  my  trial  McConville  was 
promoted.  The  newspapers  when  eulo- 
gizing him  at  the  time  said  he  was  raised 
to  the  rank  of  lieutenant  owing  to  his 
effective  work  in  the  "Flagg  case."  He 
did  work  pretty  hard.  No  matter  in 
what  part  of  the  city  a  flat  of  mine  might 
te  illegally  raided  it  was  McConville's  function 
to  lead  me  to  the  West  20th  Street  station 
house  and  he  was  "right  on  the  job."  I  was 
xisually  arrested  shortly  after  breakfast,  then 
again  in  the  afternoon  and  occasionally  in  the 
evening.  First  I  was  in,  then  out  and  then 
in  again,  and  it  was  difficult  to  attend  to 
lousiness. 

The  situation  was  simply  this:  the  police 
who  had  failed  to  extort  money  had  had  me 
indicted;  and  I  who  had  failed  to  force  my 
case  to  an  issue  had  had  them  indicted.  Now 
to  be  reinstated,  it  was  necessary  for  them  to 
have  me  convicted.  If  convicted  they  could 
then  move  to  have  the  indictment  against  them 
dismissed  on  the  ground  I  was  unworthy  of 
belief.  This  was  the  reason  they  were  so 
«ager  to    "frame  up"   a  case  against  me.        I 


41 

quote  the  words  of  my  lawyer  addressing  the 
jury:  "It  was  admitted  in  open  court  by  District 
Attorney  Fellows  himself  that  this  prosecution 
held  the  balance  for  Police  Captains  Price  and 
Donohue,  and  that  other  members  of  the  force 
are  in  danger;  that  the  charges  against  them 
might  be  multiplied;  that  Captain  Price  is 
awaiting  the  fate  of  the  indictment  against  him; 
that  the  police  have  been  so  informed  in  this 
court  house  and  by  the  District  Attorney  of 
this  County  in  person,  at  the  Bar  of  the  Court 
of  Oyer  and  Terminer,  that  upon  the  outcome 
of  this  prosecution  against  Jared  Flagg  depends 
the  fate  of  these  police  captains  and  detectives. 

So  you  see  the  terrible  influence  at  work 
from  this  police  center  to  induce  you  to  convict 
this  defendant!" 

Realizing  the  unfair  means  adopted  by  the 
police  to  ruin  my  reputation  in  order  to  save 
their  own  I  felt  that  if  their  illicit  acts  could 
be  ventilated  in  court  it  would  go  a  long  way 
towards  helping  me  vindicate  my  name.  If 
there  is  to  be  a  fight  the  people  w^ant  to  see  a 
fair  fight.  Figuratively,  I  had  been  knocked 
down  by  a  foul  blow  and  I  wanted  to  stand 
up  and  fight  for  my  rights.  Our  greatest 
glory  is  not  in  never  falling  but  in  rising  every 
time  we  fall.  But  there  were  others  who 
cared  nothing  for  my  rights,  who  were  interest- 
ed only  in  themselves;  whose  only  desire  was 
to  see  the  matter  "hushed  up."  They  felt  that 
there  had  already  been  too  much  publicity. 
"Never  mind  about  your  name,  let  it  be  for- 
gotten; never  mind  about  vindication;  never 
mind  what  the  public  may  think  of  you,  we 
stand  high  in  its  estimation  and  cannot  afford 
to  have  your  case  go  to  trial  owing  to  the 
stigma  which  will  attach  itself  to  a  case  of  this 
character."  This  is  what  certain  relatives  of 
mine  said;  but  they  were  not  near  relatives; 
not  brothers,  sisters  or  parents. 


42 

Late  one  afternoon  one  of  these  relatives 
called.  He  found  me  in  my  bedroom;  1  had 
no  office;  I  was  a  bankrupt;  and  the  following 
conversation  took  place:  "Judging  from  your 
environment  you  seem  pressed  for  ready 
cash." 

"I  am." 

"The  only  time  money  will  do  you  any  good 
is  when  you  have  none.  You  make  money 
but  what  do  you  do  with  it?  You  are  not  a 
drinking  man.  Do  you  gamble  it  away?  he 
asked. 

"Never  lost  a  dollar  gambling." 

"But  you  have  lost  everything?" 

"Everything."  I  said. 

"Even  your  reputation?" 

"Yes." 

"Well,"  said  he,  "you  have  disgraced  us; 
look  at  your  brothers;  see  the  position  they 
hold  in  society;  I  should  think  you  would  want 
to  hang  your  head  in  shame  and  sink  into 
oblivion,  yet  I  see  by  the  papers  you  con- 
template airing  yourself  in  a  public  court. 
When  does  your  case  come  to  trial?" 

"It  is  now  on  the  Calendar  and  liable  to  be 
reached  at  any  time,"  I  remarked. 

"You  know  best,  but  if  I  were  in  your  posi- 
tion  I  know  what  I  would  do." 

"What?"  1  asked. 

"Quietly  pack  my  trunk  and  cross  the  pond." 

"If  it  would  cramp  you  financially  to  cross 
the  river  how  could  you  cross  the  ocean?"  I 
inquired. 

"Don't  let  that  worry  you;  you  will  be 
supplied  with  funds;    I  will  arrange  all  that." 

"Whatl  You  advise  me  to  run  away,  leav* 
the  country?" 

"This  is  not  the  only  country."    he  said. 

"But  it  is  my  only  country,  and  you  advise 


43 

mc,  an  innocent  man,  to  leave  it  forever?" 

"It  might  be  best.  "   he  thought. 

"Best!  How  best?  Are  you  aware  that  I 
have  committed  no  crime — have  done  no 
wrong?  I  am  charged  with  having  committed 
a  misdemeanor,  but  that  is  not  a  felony,  and 
even  if  convicted — though  innocent —  I  would 
still  be  as  much  a  citizen  of  the  United  States 
as  you." 

"That's  not  the  question,"  interposed  my 
relative,  "we  do  not  say  you  are  guilty — it  is 
the  notoriety  we  dread. 

"But  I  will  be  acquitted — vindicated." 

"That  makes  no  difference.  The  papers 
will  talk  and  this  notoriety  is  offensive  to  the 
family.      We  have  a  name  to  preserve." 

"Yes,"  I  said,  "but  have  I  no  right  to  defend 
myself?    How  about  my  name? 

"It  will  be  forgotten.  If  you  go  away  it 
will  all  die  out;  people  forget;  and  we  will  not 
be  subjected  to  this  everlasting  scandal." 

"And  to  end  it  you  would  have  me  become 
a  fugitive  from  justice,  a  criminal  in  reality?" 

"I  do  not  say  that,"    he  said. 

"But  that  is  what  it  means,"  said  I.  "It 
means  that  you  would  have  me  become  an 
exile;  would  have  me  leave  my  native  country 
and  go  to  some  foreign  land,  never  to  return, 
isolated,  banished  for  life  from  kindred,  friends 
and  all  I  hold  dear.  It  means  you  would  have 
me  leave  them  all,  violate  my  oath,  forfeit  my 
bail  bond  and  go." 

"Your  bondsman  is  rich!  he  would  not 
care." 

"Not  care!  and  on  my  bond  for  seven 
thousand  dollars?" 

"It's  a  bagatelle  to  him,"  my  relative  re- 
marked. 

"But  he  is  a  friend,  a  real  friend,  he  ie 
trusting  me,  he  has  confidence;  and  you  would 


ask  me  to  shatter  that  confidence,  betray  that 
friendship  and  abscond,  run  away,  sneak 
away?  Oh!  no — not  II  Never!  Not  if  I 
were  to  be  electrocuted  I  You  do  not  know 
me;  I  am  not  one  of  that  kind.  When  my 
case  comes  up,  when  the  Clerk  of  the  Court 
calls  out,  'Jared  Flagg  to  the  bar,*  you  will  see 
me  there!  I  will  face  my  accusers,  and  if  the 
case  goes  against  me  will  take  my  medicine 
like  a  man.      There's  the   door — Good-day." 


45 


CHAPTER  3 

When  a  person  of  wealth  is  accused  of  a 
crime  and  escapes  punishment  we  attribute  it 
to  his  money;  but  in  my  case  the  money  wa« 
on  the  other  side.  Everything  tending  to  mili- 
tate against  me  the  police  possessed.  They 
pulled  "every  wire,"  controlled  every  wheel 
of  the  vast  machinery;  and  what  is  more 
worked  them  for  all  they  were  worth. 

When  Theodore  Roosevelt  heard  of  the 
underhanded  tactics  he  was  incensed.  The 
records  of  the  police  board  meeting,  held 
August  9,  1895,  show  that  he  declared  1  wa« 
being  persecuted  and  that  he  proposed  to  have 
it  stopped;  and  it  was  no  fault  of  his  that  it 
did  not  stop.  He  did  everything  in  his  power 
to  see  that  justice  should  be  done,  but  what 
could  one  man  outside  of  "Tammany"  ac- 
complish against  an  army  entrenched  in  the 
Fourteenth  Street  Wigwam? 

In  this  connection  I  insert  a  copy  of  a  letter 
sent  to  Mr.  Roosevelt  by  A.  F.  Dennett, 

"SOCIETY  FOR  THE  PREVENTION  OF 
CRIME. 
No.   105  East  22d  Street, 

New  York,  August    12,    1895 
Theodore  Roosevelt,   Esq.,  Police   Com. 

300   Muberry  Street,  New  York 
Dear   Sir:- 

I  notice  by  the  papers  that  you  are  going 
to  give  Jared  Flagg  a  hearing.  I  think  you 
are  right  and  am  sure  Mr.  Flagg  will  be  able 
to  back  up  all  his  statements.  While  I  do 
not  regard  him  as  a  saint  by  any  means  yet 
I    feel    sure    he    has    been    persecuted    by    the 


46 

police     since     he     went     before     the     Extra- 
ordinary Grand  Jury  and  they  have  retaliated 
by  driving  him  out  of  business. 
Yours  truly, 
A.   F.   DENNETT,   Superintendent." 

Doctor  Parkhurst  was  also  incensed  when 
the  facts  were  placed  before  him. 

Ordinarily  a  mere  misdemeanor  could  have 
been  disposed  of  in  ten  minutes,  but  there  was 
more  to  my  case  than  appeared  on  its  surface. 
The  bad  name  of  the  department  was  at  stake. 
If  a  police  officer  considered  it  wise  to  pay 
fifteen  thousand  dollars  to  be  made  a  captain, 
and  in  1895,  this  was  the  market  price,  the 
amount  demanded  for  the  privilege  of  black* 
mailing  people  in  his  precinct;  what  was  to 
become  of  him  if  suspended)  Where  did  his 
fifteen  thousand  come  in?  Who  was  to  make 
good?  These    were    momentous    questions. 

No  wonder  the  court  room  was  packed  to  the 
doors  with  policemen. 

In  all  the  history  of  New  York,  in  all  the 
history  of  the  police  department,  I  was  the 
first  citizen  to  have  two  police  captains  indict- 
ed and  suspended.  I  had  according  to  their 
code  of  ethics  set  a  bad  precedent.  I  had 
given  testimony  and  the  Grand  Jury  had  be- 
lieved me.  It  was  now  up  to  them — the  police 
— to  impeach  this  testimony,  not  only  that 
Donohue  and  Price  might  be  reinstated  but 
that  the  bad  name  of  the  "department"  might 
be  perpetuated;  in  plain  English,  that  the 
captains  might  be  able  to  bulldoze  and  rob  the 
people  in  the  future  eis  they  had  in  the  past. 
With  this  end  in  view  several  detectives  turned 
out  to  assist  the  Prosecuting  Attorney  and  they 
"rounded  up"  quite  an  array  of  "street- 
walkers" and  "stool-pigeons"  all  eager  to 
curry  favor  by  testifying  according  to  in- 
structions.     To    g£ize    on    this    throng;    to    see 


47 


THEODORE   ROOSEVELT 

'  (Now  President  of  the  United  States) 

{Testifying  to  the  injustice  of  the  charges  brought 

against  Jabhd  FliAQQ. 

[A  reprint  from  the  New  York  World  of  Feb.  26,  1896] 


49 

the  court  room  packed  with  officers;  to  see 
the  pompous  District  Attorney  and  his  a«-. 
sistant,  the  "silver-tongued"  orater,  Lewis,  and 
other  attorneys  pouring  over  voluminous  port- 
folios filled  with  reams  of  typewritten  matter, 
lying  depositions,  which  had  taken  months  to 
compile;  to  see  them  with  their  heads  together 
and  every  now  and  then  beckoning  to  some 
inspector,  captain  or  detective,  to  come  in- 
side the  railing;  to  see  official  messengers 
dashing  hither  and  thither,  forcing  their  way 
through  the  throng  as  though  it  were  a  matter 
of  life  or  death  to  obey  orders  promptly;  a 
casual  observer  would  have  supposed  v/here 
there  was  so  much  smoke  there  must  be  some 
fire,  some  evidence  to  convict;  but  it  was  all 
one  stupendous  bluff — there  was  nothing  to  it 
and  the  witnesses  who  were  to  have  said  so 
much,  when  placed  under  oath  and  warned  by 
the  judge  of  the  penalty  of  perjury,  wilted,  and 
their  accusations  proved  to  be  mere  exhalations 
of  "hot  air."  But  this  w^as  not  the  case  v/ith 
my  witnesses,  and  if  any  person  who  questions 
the  authenticity  of  any  statement  herein  con- 
tained will  inspect  the  records  of  my  trial  on 
file  in  the  General  Sessions  Court  he  will  be 
convinced  of  this  fact.  He  will  read  in  black 
and  white  what  Theodore  Roosevelt  and 
Doctor  Parkhurst  had  to  say  in  my  behalf. 

It  was  due  to  no  outside  influence  that  these 
men  came  forward  to  defend  me.  I  was  not 
introduced  to  them  by  influential  relatives. 
No  man  amounts  to  anything  who  travels  on 
another  man's  reputation.  I  introduced  my- 
self; went  to  them  as  man  to  man  and  asked 
to  have  my  statements  investigated.  "If," 
said  1,  "you  become  convinced  I  am  being  per- 
secuted 1  want  you  to  stand  by  me."  And  they 
promised,  if  convinced,  to  do  so.  Neither 
Roosevelt  nor  Parkhurst  will   stand  ud   for  a 


50 

man  simply  to  accommodate  himi;  they  must 
know  v/hat  they  are  doing;  must  know  the 
facts,  the  man,  his  past  record,  before  they 
will  take  the  stand  and  defend  him  under  oath. 
Therefore,  it  was  not  until  they  became  con- 
vinced after  a  full  and  impartial  investigation 
that  they  promised  to  come  forward  to  support 
nme  in  my  defense. 

Could  money  or  influence  influence  such 
witnesses?  Then  why  assert  without  knowing 
the  facts  that  I  have  been  guilty  of  w^rong  doing 
when  men  of  this  calibre  knowing  all  the  facts 
testify  to  the  contrary? 

There  is  a  difference  betw^een  "hearsay"  and 
real  evidence.  "Hearsay  evidence"  is  never 
admissible  in  a  court  of  law.  Roosevelt  and 
Parkhurst  demanded  real  evidence,  and  it  is 
owing  to  the  fact  they  received  such  evidence 
that  they  did  not  qualify  statements  or  mince 
matters. 

When  the  suave  and  oily  Prosecutor  Lewis 
pleadingly  asked  Doctor  Parkhurst  in  his 
sweetest  and  most  persuasive  tone  of  voice  if 
he  really  wanted  the  jury  to  understand  that 
he — the  Doctor — had  absolute  confidence  in 
Mr.  Flagg's  word,  Doctor  Parkhurst,  answered, 
as  per  official  court  record,  "Yes,  sir!  That  is 
just  what  I  wish  the  jury  to  believe." 

By  asking  this  question  Prosecutor  Lewis 
established  my  reputation  for  veracity.  Here 
was  Doctor  Parkhurst  of  world-wide  fame 
testifying  in  open  court,  and  when  asked  if  he 
had  absolute  confidence  in  my  word  (without 
qualification)  said  (and  I  am  quoting  from 
the  court  records)  :-  "When  Jared  Flagg 
makes  a  statement  I  believe  him." 

This  reply  was  so  different  from  what  Prose- 
cutor Lewis  expected  that  it  made  him  dizzy, 
and  he  was  quick  to  use  his  smelling  salts 
which  fortunately  he  had  with  him. 


51 


REV.  DR.  C.  H.  PARKHURST 

(President  of  the  Society  for  the  Prevention  of  Crime) 
"When  Jared  Flagg  makes  a  statement  to  me 

I  believe  him." 
[  reprint  from  the  New  York  Herald  of  Feb.  26.  1896} 


53 

In  important  trials  we  frequently  hear  the 
question  asked,  "Will  the  defendant  take  the 
stand?"  It  would  seem  that  any  person, 
guilty  or  not  guilty,  if  accused  would  want  to 
say  a  good  word  for  himself.  But  the  moment 
he  does,  a  hundred  or  more  may  testify 
against  him.  The  moment  an  accused  person 
takes  the  witness  stand,  that  moment,  in  the 
language  of  lawyers,  "he  opens  the  door"  and 
opposing  lawyers  are  no  longer  legally  con- 
fined to  the  specific  charge  for  which  he  is  on 
trial.  By  taking  the  stand  he  places  his 
character  at  stake.  His  past  life,  his  record, 
is  at  issue;  and  if  it  can  be  shown  by  witnesses 
that  his  reputation  is  questionable  their  testi- 
mony can  be  used  against  him  in  arriving  at 
a  verdict.  But  if  he  refrains  from  taking  the 
stand  in  his  own  behalf,  evidence  relating  only 
to  the  specific  charge  of  which  he  is  accused 
can  be  submitted  and  considered  by  the  judge 
and  jury.  This  explains  why  lawyers  when 
defending  clients  with  "shady  reputations"  pre- 
fer not  to  permit  them  to  take  the  stand.  But 
my  character  is  not  and  was  not  "shady;"  my 
past  life  was  clean;  cross-examination  had  no 
terrors  for  me;  there  was,  there  is,  no  page  in 
the  book  of  my  life  that  cannot  be  opened. 
Therefore  I  took  the  stand,  which  was  equiva- 
lent to  saying,  if  any  person  in  this  community 
or  in  any  community  has  aught  to  say  against 
my  character  bring  him  in;  "the  door  is  open;" 
I  am  here  waiting  to  confront  him. 

But  did  anyone  enter?  Not  a  soul  who 
could  question  my  veracity  or  character;  not 
even  those  whom  I  charged  with  attempted  ex- 
tortion. 

I  quote  the  words  of  my  lawyer:-  "Jared 
Flagg  has  lived  in  this  community  twenty-five 
years.  He  has  borne  a  good  reputation  as  the 
evidence  in  this  case  proves.      Not  one  human 


54 

being  has  appeared  against  it;  the  door  was 
open  and  Mr,  Flagg  invited  attack  by  taking 
the  stand  and  his  Honor  will  so  charge  you. 
When  we  put  his  character  in  issue  we  offered 
conflict  to  the  Prosecution.  It  was  a  challenge 
to  put  upon  the  witness  stand  any  man  or 
woman  who  from  the  beginning  of  the  de- 
fendant's life  down  to  the  day  of  his  trial 
could  assert  aught  against  him. 

Yet,  with  all  the  venom  evinced  in  this 
case;  with  the  terrible  consequences  to  the 
police  of  a  verdict  of  acquittal  to  incite  their 
zeal  and  awaken  malicious  inquiry;  with  all 
the  police  officers  involved  in  this  prosecution; 
with  Donohue  who  was  indicted;  with  Price 
hanging  between  heaven  and  earth  on  the  re- 
sult of  this  case;  with  the  incentive  terribly  im- 
pressing itself  upon  him;  throughout  this  broad 
land,  in  all  the  days  of  this  trial,  not  one  human 
creature  could  be  found  to  come  upon  that 
stand  to  say  that  Jared  Flagg  was  not  a  peace- 
able man,  an  honorable  man,  a  moral  man  and 
a  good  citizen. 

He  stands  unchallenged,  uncontradicted, 
unsullied  before  you  upon  the  witness  stand, 
without — as  the  evidence  in  this  case  shows — 
a  blemish  upon  his  name." 

The  Court  Record  shows  that  my  lawyer 
was  not  interrupted  when  making  the  fore- 
going statement  notwithstanding  that  District 
Attorney  Fellows  and  five  assistants  were 
listening  and  eagerly  waiting  for  half  a  chance 
to  "call  him  down." 

When  he  informed  the  jury  that  I  stood  un- 
challenged, uncontradicted  upon  the  witness 
stand  without  as  the  evidence  showed  a  blemish 
upon  my  name  the  Prosecuting  Attorneys  re- 
mained silent;  had  it  not  been  true,  all  six 
would  in  the  "twinkling  of  an  eye"  have  been 
on  their  feet  objecting. 


55 

They  kept  me  in  the  witness  chair  three 
days;  I  was  cross-examined  by  five  different 
attorneys  and  although  the  Record  shows 
that  not  one  word  of  my  testimony  was  con- 
tradicted no  mention  of  this  fact  was  made  by 
the  newspapers;  on  the  contrary  certain  editors 
and  persons  intimated  that  the  charge  of 
blackmail  was  set  up  by  me  that  1  might  pose 
as  a  persecuted  person. 

For  a  year  prior  to  my  trial  Captains  Dono- 
hue  and  Price  had  been  going  about  inter- 
viewing reporters  and  telling  politicians  with 
a  "pull"  and  ministers  with  influence  that  I  had 
invented  this  yarn  about  blackmailing  simply 
to  awaken  public  sympathy.  All  this  talk  had 
its  effect.  It  affected  Father  Ducey  and  it 
moved  the  Reverand  J.  A.  B.  Wilson  to  such 
an  extent  that  he  felt  constrained  not  only  to 
lunch  with  me  but  to  appear  against  me  at  my 
trial. 

I  quote  from  the  Record:-  Mr.  Flagg:  "Mr. 
Wilson  called  at  my  apartment  and  said  if  I 
would  manifest  a  contrite  spirit,  admit  I  was 
a  sinner,  withdraw  my  charges  against  the 
police,  and  incidentally  defray  the  cost  of 
having  electricity  installed  in  his  church  located 
on  Eighteenth  Street,  West  of  Eighth  Avenue, 
he  would  intercede  for  me  at  the  Throne  of 
Grace  and  pray  that  I  might  be  saved  from  the 
wrath  of  the  world  to  come." 

Persons  who  believe  one  side  of  a  story  until 
they  hear  the  other  said  they  did  not  believe 
any  member  of  New  Yorks  "Finest"  would 
stoop  to  blackmail;  but  why  did  not  the  police 
say  so?  Why  did  not  Donohue  and  Price  say 
so  when  I  on  the  witness  stand  accused  them  to 
their  faces  of  attempted  extortion?  They 
heard  me.  Why  did  they  not  deny  it?  If  it 
were  not  true  why  did  they  not  have  me  sent 
to  prison  for  perjury?      I  will   tell   you  why. 


56 

There  is  no  law  against  lying.  Every  day  con- 
versational lying  is  permissible — not  punish- 
able; but  there  is  a  law  against  perjury,  which 
is  testifying  falsely  under  oath.  Had  these 
police  captains  sworn  to  the  lies  in  court  that 
they  told  out  of  court  I  would  have  had  them 
convicted  of  perjury.  This  is  a  pretty  good 
reason  and  this  is  the  only  reason  why  they  did 
not  dare  to  contradict  me. 

If  a  man  makes  a  statement  under  oath 
realizing  the  consequences  of  making  a  false 
statement  and  another  man  also  realizing  the 
gravity  of  an  oath  says,  I  do  not  object  to  lying 
a  little  out  of  court,  but  do  not  ask  me  to  go 
into  court  and  swear  to  the  lies  I  have  told  out 
of  court  which  of  the  two  is  worthy  of  belief? 

What  I  said  against  the  police  I  said  in  court 
and  under  oath.  What  the  police  said  against 
me  was  said  out  of  court  and  not  under  oath. 

I  quote  from  my  lawyer:  "Donohue  will  have 
his  character  assailed;  will  be  charged  on  the 
oath  of  Mr.  Flagg  with  attempted  extortion, 
and  that  is  the  last  we  see  of  Donohue.  The 
District  Attorney  closes  his  case  and  I  will  stop 
my  case  right  here.  I  will  surrender  every 
right,  every  privilege  that  I  have  and  agree,  if 
the  District  Attorney  will  call  Captain  Donohue 
to  the  stand  to  permit  him  to  do  so." 

Why  did  not  Donohue  or  the  District  At- 
torney consider  it  expedient  to  accept  this 
offer? 

And  Price,  what  did  he  have  to  say  for  him- 
self? 

I  quote  from  my  lawyer:  "Price  will  have 
his  character  assailed,  will  be  charged  on  the 
oath  of  Mr.  Flagg  with  having  attempted  to 
extort  a  bribe  from  him  and  that  is  the  last  v/e 
see  of  Mr.  Captain  Price  in  his  full  buttoned 
and  imposing  uniform,  Mr.  Flagg  is  here,  but 
the  conspirators  are  hidden  somewhere,  afraid 


57 

to  face  the  jury  that  they  have  impaneled  to 
try  the  crimes  they  have  imputed  to  Mr.  Flagg." 

The  witness  who  furnished  the  only  fact 
upon  which  to  hinge  the  action  against  me  was 
an  aged  woman  who  lived  on  the  top  floor  of 
a  tenement  house  located  on  West  Nineteenth 
Street.  This  woman  connplained  that  my 
tenants  were  on  the  roof  one  Summer  night  in 
I  895,  and  disturbed  her  by  singing  the  popular 
ditty  entitled — "She  is  the  Sunshine  of  Paradise 
Alley."  And  for  this  "crime"  I  was  sentenced 
to  serve  thirty  days  in  the  city  prison  and  pay 
a  fine  of  five  hundred  dollars.  Under  cross- 
examination  she  would  not  say  it  was  after  mid- 
night when  the  notes  from  the  tuneful  refrain 
first  reached  her  ears,  but  she  would  swear 
she  was  in  bed.  Barring  the  testimony  of  this 
one  witness  the  jury  disregarded  as  unworthy 
of  belief  every  word  of  testimony  submitted 
against  me.  And  when  twelve  disinterested 
men  listen  for  ten  long  days  and  evenings  to 
evidence  it  is  reasonable  to  presume  that  they 
are  better  qualified  to  render  a  correct  verdict 
than  those  who  base  their  opinion  on  hearsay 
or  newspaper  reports.  To  say  that  these  men 
failed  to  do  their  duty;  to  say  I  am  guilty  and 
only  happened  to  crawl  out  by  luck  is  equiva- 
lent to  saying  that  those  who  were  not  there, 
who  heard  no  evidence  and  saw  no  witnesses, 
know  more  about  the  inside  facts  than  those 
who  were  there  and  who  heard  and  saw  it  all. 

To  say  that  this  jury — the  twelve  men  there 
sitting  answerable  to  their  Maker — men  who 
had  sworn,  each  of  them,  "So  help  me  God 
I  v/ill  decide  this  case  upon  the  evidence", 
to  say  they  did  not  do  so  when  they  brought 
in  the  verdict,  "Not  Guilty  of  renting  flats  to 
be  used  for  immoral  purposes  or  maintain- 
ing disorderly  houses",  is  equivalent  to  saying 
that  each  one  of  them  is  a  liar.      No  conscien- 


38 

tious  person  would  make  such  a  remark.  Yet, 
flippant  individuals — the  kind  who  know  it  all 
^have  made  this  assertion. 

"A  general  impression  prevails",  they  say, 
but  "general  impressions"  are  not  evidence. 

The  Prosecuting  Attorney,  in  his  opening 
speech  said,  "A  general  impression  prevails, 
but  1  am  going  to  submit  for  the  conscientious 
consideration  of  the  jurors  something  more 
material  than  general  impressions."  And 
placing  his  hand  on  a  stack  of  clap-trap  illegal 
documents  more  than  a  foot  high,  said — and 
1  am  quoting  his  words — "I  have  here  indis- 
putable evidence,  and  am  prepared  to  prove, 
will  prove  by  it,  and  by  reputable  and  dis- 
interested witnesses,  that  the  defendant  is 
Suilty  of  every  allegation  contained  in  the  in- 
dictments." 

He  made  this  assertion  to  intensify  the  "gen- 
eral impression",  the  impression  that  those  not 
personally  acquainted  with  me  then  held, 
namely,  that  I  was  **a  bad  man." 

But  a  few  days  later,  after  he  had  submit- 
ted his  evidence  for  the  "conscientious  con- 
sideration" of  the  jurors,  after  every  disreput- 
able and  interested  witness  he  could  muster  had 
been  heard,  what  was  it  that  induced  the 
jury  to  ignore  his  alleged  "indisputable  evi- 
dence" and  "disinterested  witnesses",  and  to 
durow  out  and  dismiss  twenty-four  of  the  twen- 
ty-five counts  contained  in  the  indictments? 

Let  those  wiseacres  answer  this  if  they  can! 

The  jury  acquitted  me  of  the  charge  of  keep- 
ing disorderly  houses,  knowingly  renting  flats 
for  immoral  purposes,  violating  the  excise  law 
and  of  every  other  charge  with  the  exception  of 
one,  and  there  was  nothing  immoral  in  con- 
nection with  this  one  count.  It  was  the  most 
insignificant  of  them  all — that  which  charged 
me  with  maintaining  a  nuisance  by  having  ten- 
ants with  operatic  inclinations. 


r 


59 


If  such  a  verdict  was  not  a  vindication  I 
would  like  to  know  the  definition  of  the  word 
"vindication". 

This  petty  offense,  for  w^hich  any  owner 
of  flat  property  might  be  held  accountable, 
was  the  only  thing  for  which  I  was  ever 
placed  on  trial  and  yet  columns  have  been 
written  by  men  who  were  paid  because 
they  possessed  the  faculty  of  writting 
sensationally.  To  write  as  I  am  writing, 
the  truth,  is  easy.  A  schoolboy  could  record 
facts  but  to  artistically  distort  the  truth  re- 
quires talent.  The  scribes  who  have  featured 
me  possessed  talent  and  as  a  result  of  their 
aptitude  in  juggling  words  thousands  have  been 
led  to  talk.  They  have  talked  behind  my  back; 
they  have  insinuated,  intimated,  suspected, 
surmised,  presumed,  assumed,  asserted  and  de- 
clared that  the  innuendoes  heaped  upon  me 
were  true,  but  what  have  they  proved?  Noth- 
ing!     Absolutely  nothing! 

From  the  day  I  was  born,  from  the  day  I 
left  my  native  town.  New  Haven,  a  boy  of 
fifteen,  and  came  to  New  York  to  earn  my  live- 
lihood, down  to  the  day  of  my  trial,  no  human 
being  has  ever  been  able  to  produce  a  scintil- 
la of  evidence  to  prove  or  to  show  or  even 
tending  to  show  that  I  am  not  an  honest  man, 
a  law-abiding  man,  and  a  man  of  decent  mor- 
al character. 


60 


CHAPTER  4 

Only  a  few  minutes  after  the  verdict  had 
been  brought  in  the  afternoon  papers  issued 
extras:  ''Flagg  Guilty." 

"My  God,  he's  guilty!"  people  said  as  they 
rolled  up  their  eyes  and  spoke  in  stage  whis- 
pers. But  guilty  of  what?  To  this  day  not 
one  person  in  a  thousand  can  answer  that 
question.  Even  those  who  should  have  ascer- 
tained the  truth  before  placing  me  under  a 
ban  know  little  or  nothing  about  the  matter. 
There  are  two  sides  to  every  story  and  this 
is  the  first  time  my  side  has  appeared  in  print 
but  do  not  imagine  I  am  posing  as  a  martyr. 
The  wrongs  endured  by  me  are  trivial  com- 
pared to  the  woes  of  some  others.  In  the 
name  of  justice  unjust  acts  are  constantly  com- 
mitted. Under  the  head  of  news  falsehoods 
are  circulated.  Had  the  press  informed  the 
people  of  the  real  offense  for  which  I  was  ad- 
judged guilty  I  would  make  no  protest;  but  for 
sensationalism  which  means  circulation  the 
truth  was  perverted. 

From  an  editor's  standpoint  nothing  suc- 
ceeds like  circulation,  and  what  did  these  edi- 
tors care  for  me?  I  have  sued  half  the  news- 
papers in  the  City;  and  as  I  have  never  insti- 
tuted a  suit  without  provocation  I  have  sel- 
dom lost  one.  Yet  whatever  cash  damages 
I  have  received  will  not  obliterate  from  the 
minds  of  the  persons  who  have  read  the  ar- 
ticles the  impressions  formed.  Nothing  has 
appeared  or  will  appear  in  the  papers  to  show 


r 


61 


that  these  articles  were  false  or  that  the  pub- 
lishers had  to  pay  damages  for  publishing 
them.  Editors  would  not  consider  such  news 
sufficiently  sensational  to  interest  the  public. 

Certain  persons  entrusted  by  the  people  to 
administer  the  law  impartially  have  been  par- 
tial in  their  treatment  of  me.  Yet  I  am  told 
that  I  have  reason  to  be  thankful — I  did  not 
lose  my  life.  When  I  think  of  the  gun-men, 
the  "stool  pigeons"  and  the  corrupt  police 
influence,  I  suppose  I  ought  to  be  thankful  I 
am  still  on  earth. 

It  would  be  interesting  if  some  person,  who 
could,  would  explain  why  they  took  my  case, 
a  paltry  misdemeanor,  to  the  General  Ses- 
sions Court,  a  tribunal  in  which  only  felons 
and  murderers  are  tried.  The  records  show^ 
that  no  person  accused  of  a  misdemeanor  was 
ever  tried  there  before  or  has  ever  been  tried 
there  since. 

What  kind  of  political  influence  enabled 
them  to  block  the  wheels  of  this  great  temple 
of  justice  for  almost  a  fortnight  while  the  at- 
torneys wrangled  over  the  morality  of  my  ten- 
ants? 

Why  was  it  that  they  exacted  from  me  bail 
bonds  ten  times  as  large,  ten  times  as  great  as 
was  ever  known  to  have  been  exacted  from 
persons  charged  with  misdemeanors?  In  my 
case  Judge  Newburger  refused  as  security  for 
ten  thousand  dollars,  a  bond  backed  by  an 
equity  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  thousand 
dollars  on  improved  city  property.  I  quote  the 
words  of  my  lawyer  to  the  court: — "I  will  put 
the  District  Attorney's  office  to  the  challenge 
that  there  is  not  a  man  indicted  for  man- 
slaughter today  whose  bail  approximates  that 
amount." 

Why  should  they  have  demanded  of  me  free 
and  clear  property  appraised  by  the  city  at  ten 


62 

times  the  amount  of  the  bond  required?      Why 
did  they  discriminate  against  me?      The  pen- 
alty inflicted  for  a  first  offense  is  usually  less 
severe  than  for  a  second.      Why  was  this  rule 
not  applicable  to  my  case?     The  records  show 
that  the  extreme  penalty  imposed  for  a  simi- 
lar first  offense   (maintaining  a  nuisance)   was 
ten   days   or  ten   dollars;   if  a  bum,   ten   days 
"on  the  island;"  if  a  gentleman,  a  ten  dollar 
fine.      But  see  what  they  did   to   me!      Does 
the  law  seek  to   degfrade  a  person  before  he 
is  tried,  or  is  a  person  in  "the  eyes  of  the  law" 
to  be  regarded  innocent  until  proven  gfuilty? 
At  divers  times,  two  years  before  I  could  force 
them  to  bring  my  case  to  trial,   they  dragged 
me  through  the  streets  like  some  captured  out- 
law.     I  was,  and  I  am,  a  citizen  of  the  United 
States.      I  was  charged  with  an  offense  the  na- 
ture of  which  was  not  serious.      Had  I  been 
adjudged   guilty  of  every  count  in  every  in* 
dictment  found  against  me  1  would  still  have 
been   a  citizen  and  entitled   to   all   the   rights 
of  a  citizen. 

This  is  the  truth — this  is  law.  Therefore, 
is  there  a  law-abiding  person  in  the  United 
States  who  has  the  temerity  to  say  that  he  ap- 
proves of  a  fellow-citizen  being  humiliated  in 
broad  daylight,  on  the  public  streets,  as  1  was) 
Unless  you  approve  of  this  form  of  persecu- 
tion you  should  not  decry  and  help  to  bring 
discredit  on  me  for*  having  been  subjected 
to  it. 

The  people  as  a  whole  have  nothing  against 
me  and  wanted  me  to  have  a  fair  trial;  but 
it  so  happened  that  the  servants  of  the  people 
betrayed  the  confidence  of  the  people  and  re- 
sorted to  trickery.  Why  were  the  police  so 
bitterly  disposed  toward  me?  It  was  because 
I  would  not  submit  to  their  demands.  No 
honorable  man  innocent  of  wrongdoing  would ; 


69 

»ut  a  dishonorable  man  might  pay  "hush 
money"  to  continue  an  unlawful  business.  Be- 
cause my  business  was  lawful  I  wouldn't,  and 
if  on  this  account  the  police  with  the  help  of 
the  newspapers  blasted  my  reputation  do 
j'-ou  consider  it  just  to  join  with  them  and  so 
assist  in  keeping  me  down?  All  I  ask  is  fair 
play;  give  your  fellow-citizen  a  fair  chance; 
do  not  "damn  him"  without  being  able  to  give 
a  reason. 

All  through — from  beginning  to  end— I 
have  been  persecuted,  not  prosecuted,  and  it 
is  about  time  there  should  be  a  "let  up". 

For  years   I   have   been   my   own   master 

have  worked  for  myself — and  not  counting; 
a  trip  abroad  have  given  myself  two  vacations* 
a  ten  and  a  five  day  outing.  It  is  not  work 
that  kills  us,  it  is  recreation;  and  barring  these 
fifteen  days  I  have  not  missed  a  day  from 
(when  in)  business  in  all  these  years. 

Because  I  do  not  go  through  life  with  a 
careworn  expression  and  because  I  appreciate 
good  fellowship  does  that  mean  I  am  lacking 
in  principle?  I  am  not  ashamed  to  admit 
I  enjoy  life  and  the  good  things  in  it  to  the 
utmost.  There  have  been  but  few  days  in 
my  life  that  I  would  not  like  to  go  back  to 
and  live  over.  The  fact  that  I  have  not  been 
sick  fifty  minutes  in  fifty  years — sick  enough 
to  lie  down — should  explode  the  theory  that 
I  have  lived  too  festive  a  life. 

My  precepts  on  health  and  happiness  follo"wr; 

Never  do  anything  in  a  hurry.  So  vital  is 
this  that  if  ignored  every  other  rule  relating 
to  health  becomes  a  joke.  Eat  slowly,  drink 
slowly,  smoke  slowly,  and  if  occasionally  it 
will  afford  you  pleasure  to  make  yourself 
miserable  by  losing  your  temper  lose  it  slowly. 

Do  not  anticipate  trouble.  We  all  see  more 
or  less  trouble — most  of  which  never  happens. 


64 

So  do  not  let  fear  interfere  with  your  pleasure. 

Do  not  make  a  tragedy  of  a  comedy  by 
taking  life  too  seriously;  yet  if  you  have  real 
cause  to  worry,  worry  by  all  means — if  it  will 
help  matters.      If  it  will  not,  do  not. 

Do  not  make  a  Hell  on  earth — for  yourself 
— by  becoming  "soured"  on  the  world  and 
blaming  all  for  the  unjust  acts  of  a  few;  or  in- 
jure yourself  by  nursing  a  grudge  against  any- 
one. 

And  above  all  things  do  not  sap  your 
vitality  by  associating  with  persons  who  pride 
themselves  on  being  so  delicately  sensitive 
that  they  are  always  fancying  themselves 
slighted. 

It  may  not  be  pleasant  to  be  slighted,  and 
it  is  not  pleasant  to  be  vilified,  yet,  if  it 
pleases  some  to  vilify  me,  let  them  "damn 
away."  I  do  not  like  it;  I  want  to  stop  it;  I 
am  going  to  stop  it  if  I  can;  but,  if  I  cannot,  I 
am  not  going  to  fret  over  it. 

As  an  example  of  the  vilification,  the  in- 
justice, visited  upon  me  and  the  discriminating 
enforcement  of  the  law,  take  the  case  of  Police 
Captain  Price  and  compare  it  with  my  own. 
I  took  the  stand  in  my  own  defense,  I  laid  my 
life  bare  and  was  acquitted  of  every  charge 
pertaining  to  dishonesty  and  immorality,  but 
was  found  guilty  of  a  petty  misdemeanor 
(m.aintaining  a  nuisance) ;  and  immediately 
thereafter,  on  the  strength  of  this.  Captain 
Price  (with  a  record  so  black  that  even  the 
thought  of  having  his  past  life  investigated  in 
court  was  enough  to  make  him  run  like 
"a  whipped  cur"  was  relieved  of  the  charge 
of  a  felony. 

The  moment  I  was  convicted  (of  maintaining 
a  nuisance)  the  indictment  against  Price  weis 
dismissed;  and  he  was  not  only  reinstated  but 
assigned   to   a   precinct   where   he   could   with 


65 

impunity,  under  the  protection  and  in  the 
name  of  the  law,  persecute  the  man  who  had 
dared  to  accuse  him  in  open  court  of  attempted 
blackmail.  And  be  it  said  to  his  shame  he  was 
not  dilatory  in  availing  himself  of  the  op- 
portunity. 

Clothe  a  desperado  with  police  power  and 
you  have  a  dare-devil  that  no  freebooter  in 
the  country  can  rival.  He  will  draw  the  line 
at  nothing;  put  up  any  job;  swear  away  any 
person's  liberty  or  life  to  settle  a  grudge. 
Price  had  a  grudge  against  me  and  w^ith  all 
the  swaggering  bravado  and  foul-mouthed  in- 
solence of  an  unprincipled  police  captain 
vowed  he  would  have  satisfaction. 

Now  it  appears  that  out  of  the  wreck  I  had 
saved  one  piece  of  property  consisting  of  two 
flat  buildings  located  on  West  Thirty-third 
Street  near  Broadway.  I  held  a  forty-two 
year  ground  lease  on  this  property.  It  was 
claimed  by  Price  that  one  of  my  tenants  had 
invited  some  friends  to  have  a  sociable  game 
of  cards.  He  further  claimed  that  a  dispute 
arose  and  one  of  the  guests  stabbed  another 
with  a  hatpin.  The  visitor  supposed  to  have 
been  pricked  with  the  pin  could  not  be  found. 
The  alleged  stabber  could  be  found  but  was  not 
arrested.  The  hatpin  was  alleged  by  Price  to 
be  the  property  of  the  wife  of  the  lessee  of 
the  flat,  both  of  whom  put  in  a  general  denial 
But  I,  who  was  not  on  the  premises  at  the  time 
the  game  was  alleged  to  have  been  played,  was 
arrested  by  Price  and  held  without  bonds  for 
examination  on  the  ground  that  I  was  an 
accessory  before  the  fact — implicated  in  what 
might  prove  to  be  murder. 

I  have  never  posed  as  a  saint,  but  this  im- 
putation, murder  in  any  degree,  was  the 
"straw  that  broke  the  camel's  back;'*  and 
although  Price  was  reprimanded  by  the  Judge 


66 

and  the  case  thrown  out  of  court  I  then  and 
there  "threw  up  the  sponge,"  threw  away  my 
forty-two  year  ground  lease  (which  has  since 
been  sold  at  an  advance  of  one  hundred 
thousand  dollars  over  the  price  it  had  cost  me) 
and  quit  the  flat  business  a  bankrupt. 

The  enthusiasm  was  pretty  well  knocked 
out  of  me,  and  when  you  lose  your  enthusiasm 
you  lose  your  opportunities;  yet  I  kept  alive, 
lived  for  a  year  or  two  without  knowing  how  I 
lived.  Then  things  instead  of  getting  better 
got  worse;  and  I  existed  for  a  year  or  two 
without  knowing  how  I  existed. 

Had  any  member  of  my  family  known  the 
position  in  which  I  was  placed  he  or  she 
would  have  come  to  my  rescue.  But  as  I  felt 
I  had  no  one  to  blame  but  myself  I  kept  to 
myself.  In  making  this  statement  I  am  not 
exonerating  the  police  or  the  newspapers  but 
the  members  of  my  family  and  my  friends. 
1  had  friends,  but  they  were  few  and  far 
between.  People  like  to  draw  close  to  af- 
fluence but  they  instinctively  draw  away  from 
poverty;  therefore,  if  a  person's  resources  are 
circumscribed  it  behooves  him  to  keep  making 
new  acquaintances  all  the  time,  otherwise  in  a 
short  time  he  will  find  himself  sitting  high  and 
dry  without  a  friend  in  the  world. 

In  1 898  I  found  myself  sitting  in  a  small 
room  on  the  top  floor  of  a  building  that  could 
not  be  called  modern.  I  had  a  few  callers, 
not  counting  creditors,  and  one  of  these  callers 
was  named  George  D.  Smith.  Smith  was  a 
friend,  and  is  to  this  day.  Smith  would  work 
for  a  salary  when  he  could  get  it.  When  he 
could  not  he  would  work  without  it,  and  it 
was  due  to  this  noble  trait  in  his  character  that 
he  worked  for  me  so  many  years. 

He  was  with  me  when  I  was  up  in  the  world ; 
when  I  was  down  in  the  world:  when  I  was  a 


67 

cieditor;  when  I  was  a  debtor;  and  when 
hundreds  of  my  creditors  were  howling  around 
me  like  ravenous  wolves.  He  was  with  m« 
when  I  ascended  from  the  depths  of  poverty 
and  when  I  descended  to  the  depths  of 
poverty;  when  I  dined  at  Delmonico's;  when 
I  dined  at  the  Diary  Kitchen;  and  when  1 
dined  on  a  loaf  of  bread;  but  through  it  all, 
in  fair  weather  and  in  stormy,  he  was  always 
the  same— cheerful  and  considerate. 

The  first  day  he  walked  into  my  top-story 
room  he  was  considerate — he  had  a  loaf  of 
bread  under  his  arm — he  did  not  know  whether 
I  had  dined,  and  during  our  repast  the  follow- 
ing conversation  took  place: 

"What  do  they  tax  you  for  this  place?" 
asked  Smith. 

"Ten  dollars,"  said  I. 

"Not  a  week?" 

"No — ^a  month." 

"And  how  long  have  you  been  here?" 

"Almost  a  month." 

"Did  you  have  to  pay  any  money  on  account 
of  the  rent  before  taking  possession?" 
;Paid  all." 

"All?      In  advance?"   asked  Smith 

"We  are  not  all  gifted,"  said  I.  "You  are 
the  only  person  with  whom  I  am  acquainted 
possessing  the  faculty  of  residing  in  this  town 
without  paying  rent." 

"I  pay  when  I  can;  when  I  can't  I  do  the 
next  best  thing — move — you  know  how  I  am 
situated,"  said  Smith. 

"Yes,  we  are  both  in  the  same  boat,  and  on 
the  first  of  the  month  I  may  move.  Tom,  the 
colored  watchman,  tells  me  the  landlord  is 
going  to  ask  me  to  vacate." 

"And  pray  why?  You  paid  one  month'* 
rent,"  said  Smith.  "You  must  have  a  queer 
landlord  if  he  is  afraid  to  trust  you  for  the 
next  three  months." 


68 

"That's  not  it,,  I  answered.  "It's  not  a 
question  of  money  but  of  morality." 

Then  I  explained  how  a  few  of  my  former 
tenants  hearing  that  I  was  in  hard  luck  had 
called;  not  to  ask  if  there  was  something  they 
might  do,  but  to  do  something — to  actually 
offer  me  money.  Until  then  I  did  not  realize 
there  was  so  much  goodness  in  the  world. 
And  I  continued — Smith  listened — "Some  of 
my  neighbors  probably  having  read  and  be- 
lieved without  knowing,  took  it  for  granted  I 
should  have  no  callers.  They  probably  inti- 
mated. Neighbors  like  to  intimate  things  and 
one  old  fossil  on  the  floor  below  intimated  I 
was  fond  of  women." 

"Fond  of  women,"  soliloquized  Smith, 
"and  a  man  who  is  not,  is  no  man,  or  he  is  a 
man  with  a  diseased  mind.  Must  you  live  the 
life  of  a  hermit?  Have  you  no  right  to  receive 
callers?  Suppose  you  were  doing  business 
here  and  had  customers,  callers,  would  your 
landlord  object?" 

"Perhaps  not,"  I  replied. 

"Well  then,"  said  Smith,  "why  not  tell  him 
you  are  doing  business?"  Why  not  call  your- 
self a  theatrical  agent.  A  theatrical  agent 
must  have  callers;  no  callers,  no  business;  no 
business,  no  rent." 

"A  theatrical  agent!"  Happy  thought,  and 
I  decided  to  be  one,  or  at  all  events  to  call 
myself  one. 

"And."  said  Smith,  "If  I  meet  any  of  our 
old  friends  dramatically  disposed  I  will  send 
them  up.  I  will  tell  them  you  are  a  theatrical 
agent." 

"Do  it,"  said  I.  "I'm  sick  of  idleness;  we 
will  put  up  a  sign.  What  will  a  little  tin  one 
cost?" 

"Fifty  cents  or  a  dollar,  and  I  know  a  sign 


69 

painter  who  will  trust  us,"  said  Smith.  "You 
know  the  fellow  who  made  your  large  real 
estate  sign.  He  got  his  money — two  hundred 
dollars — and  1  told  you  at  the  time  it  was  ex- 
tortion; but  you  handed  over  a  check  without 
a  word,  and  I  rather  guess  that  fellow  would 
be  only  too  pleased  to  paint  any  sign  you  might 
order.  ' 

The  next  day  a  tin  sign  was  tacked  on  the 
jamb  of  my  door  in  such  a  manner  as  to  pro- 
ject into  the  hall.  It  was  not  pretentious — 
simply,  "J.  Flagg,  Theatrical  Agent" — but  it 
was  hardly  up  before  the  landlord  'came  up. 
Anyone  with  half  an  eye  could  see  he  was 
agitated,  and  to  aggravate  matters  just  at  this 
crucial  moment  Smith  was  coming  down  the 
hall  followed  by  three  young  women  all  crazy 
to  go  on  the  stage.  Some  think  a  person  must 
be  crazy  to  want  to  go  on  the  stage. 

As  Smith  and  his  clients  took  possession  of 
my  office,  the  landlord  out  of  deference  to 
them  requested  me  to  step  into  the  hall  and 
forthwith  proceeded  to  lay  down  the  law. 

"A  theatrical  agent  I  I  wouldn't  have  one 
in  my  building — not  at  double  the  rent.  I 
didn't  know  you  were  one."  And  I  could 
not  tell  him  I  did  not  know^  it  myself.  There 
was  the  sign  and  there  were  the  would-be 
chorus  girls;  but  I  assured  him  my  business 
was  limited,  and  this  produced  a  soothing 
effect  on  his  nerves.  I  spoke  the  truth,  my 
business  was  limited.  I  had  none  and  knew 
no  more  about  the  theatrical  business  than 
the  man  in  the  moon,  and  my  colleague—— 
Smith — knew  less.  Therefore,  had  Smith  not 
been  a  truly  remarkable  borrower  as  well  as  a 
wonderful  financier,  it  is  doubtful  if  the  rent 
would  ever  have  been  paid;  but  as  it  was  we 
managed  to  "hang  on"  after  a  fashion  while 
three  months  were  rolling  by. 


70 

One  day,  when  entering  the  building,  I  met 
our  landlord  going  out.  "How's  business" — 
he  asked.  It  was  quiet,  and  he  remarked  en- 
couragingly, ''your  season  will  soon  be  opening; 
Spring  is  coming  and  managers  will  then  be 
engaging  people  for  their  Fall  productions." 

I  acquiesced,  although  this  was  news  to  me, 
and  I  imparted  the  information  to  Srriith.  "If," 
said  I,  "the  season  is  about  to  open  and  if  I 
am  a  theatrical  agent,  why  not  be  one?"  You 
never  get  anywhere  if  you  do  not  start,  and  I 
sent  Srrfiih  out  to  discover  how  the  business 
was  conducted.  He  reported  that  it  was 
a  knotty  proposition.  The  theatrical  agents 
were  organized;  it  took  money  to  join  their 
union.  Most  of  them  were  personally  ac- 
quainted with  the  managers.  When  an  agent 
procured  "talent"  he  exacted  a  commission. 
The  custom  w^as  for  the  manager  to  deduct 
this  from  the  actor's  salary  and  remit  to  the 
agent.  Certain  managers  were  friendly  with 
certain  agents;  they  were  clannish  and  an  out- 
sider would  stand  a  poor  chance  of  "butting 
in." 

Nevertheless,  I  decided  to  "butt,"  and  in- 
serted an  advertisement  which  read  at 
follows:  "Attractive  young  women  wanted  for 
light  opera  chorus,"  etc. 

The  first  few  callers  were  not  sufficiently 
attractive  for  stage  work,  but  the  third  brought 
a  living  picture — lima  Salter.  It  was  the  am- 
bition of  her  life  to  go  on  the  stage,  she  said. 
And  we  said,  "If  we  cannot  put  you  on  we 
had  better  retire  from  business."  But  I  cannot 
sing,"  she  added,  and  I  told  her,  "Not  to  let 
a  little  thing  like  that  worry  her.  If  the 
manager  to  whom  I  propose  sending  you 
knows  his  business  he  will  engage  you."  This 
was  said  with  the  assurance  of  one  who  does 
not  know  what  he  is  talking  about.      Yet  I  had 


71 

an  idea  that  theatrical  managers  wore  often 
brought  in  touch  with  the  human  side  of  life 
and  must  therefore  be  human.  I  felt  that 
anyone  of  them  would  extend  a  helping  hand 
to  this  seventeen-year-old  girl  who  was 
"striking  out"  in  the  world  for  herself,  and 
who  was  my  first  real  stage  applicant;  that  is, 
the  first  I  accepted. 

In  those  days  I  was  not  only  unacquainted 
with  the  managers,  but  did  not  even  know 
their  names.  I  was  aware,  however,  that 
there  was  a  man  named  Oscar  Hammerstein 
who  owned  a  few  theatres,  and  without  know- 
ing how  he  might  take  it,  gave  Miss  Salter  a 
letter  of  introduction  in  which  I  assured  him 
that  any  attention  shown  the  young  woman 
would  be  appreciated  by  me.  "You  tell  him 
Mr.  Flagg  sent  you  up,"  I  said;  "give  him  this 
letter  and  then  come  back  and  report." 

Both  Smith  and  myself  were  curious  to 
know  the  outcome,  and  we  waited  and  waited, 
the  hours  rolled  by,  but  the  young  woman  did 
not  return.  It  was  eleven  A.  M.  when  she 
left  our  office.  Smith  had  been  out  and  re- 
turned and  advised  me  to  "forget  it."  "We 
shall  never  see  her  again,"  he  said.  But  just 
then  we  heard  short  quick  foot-steps  coming 
down  the  hall  and  the  next  moment  she  burst 
into  our  office  like  a  ray  of  sunshine,  with  face 
all  aglow  and  eyes  sparkling.  Before  we 
could  offer  her  a  chair  she  had  dropped  into 
one.  "I  am  engaged,"  she  exclaimed,  "en- 
gaged! oh!  I  cannot  believe  it — it  seems  like 
a  dream;  but  here  is  the  contract — forty  weeks 
— all  costumes  furnished — nothing  to  buy. 
Oh!  I'm  so  happy;  this  is  the  happiest  day  of 
my  life."  And  then  her  eyes  became  moist, 
she  smiled,  she  laughed,  she  put  her  handker- 
chief to  her  eyes,  she  struggled  to  keep  the 
tears  back,  but  there  was  no  stopping  them,  and 


72 

she  cried  for  joy.  This  joy  was  so  infectious 
that  even  Smith  felt  constrained  to  blow  his 
nose.  "Calm  yourself,  my  child;  wipe  your 
eyes  and  tell  us  all  about  it,"  I  said.  "In  the 
first  place,  what  detained  you  so  long?"  "I 
know  I  promised  to  come  straight  back,  but  I 
had  to  go  home — I  could  not  help  it — I  could 
not  wait,  I  wanted  to  tell  Mother." 

"Is  your  father  living?"    I  asked. 

"No." 

"Have  you  any  brothers?" 

"A  little  one." 

"And  you  live  with  your  mother  and  little 
brother?" 

"Yes,"  she  said,  "and  eighteen  dollars  a 
week!  Look!  There  it  is  typewritten  in  the 
agreement;  that  is  to  be  my  salary — eighteen 
dollars!  And  it  means  so  much,  so  much  to 
us;"  and  again  the  tears  commenced  to  "well 
up"  in  her  beautiful  but  inflamed  eyes. 

No  man  likes  to  see  a  woman  cry  so  without 
intending  to  be  harsh  I  commanded  her  to 
stop,  and  to  "get  down  to  business"  and  tell 
us  how  she  did  it. 

"You  did  it,"  she  said,  "you  gave  me  the 
letter — it  was  owing  to  your  influence  with 
Mr.  Hammerstein  that  I  was  accepted." 

Smith  looked  at  me — I  looked  at  Smith, 
neither  smiled.  "Well  now  tell  us.  You  first 
went  to  the  stage  door  of  the  Victoria 
Theatre  ? ' ' 

"Yes." 

"And  told  the  door-keeper  you  wished  to 
see  Mr.  Hammerstein?" 

"Yes,  that  I  had  a  letter  and  the  man  asked 
me  where  I  got  it.  I  told  him  it  was  a  letter 
of  introduction  to  Mr.  Hammerstein  signed  by 
Mr.  Flags,  the  Theatrical  Agent." 

"But  that  man  does  not  know  me." 


73 

"He  seemed  to;  soon  as  I  mentioned  your 
nam^e  he  said  that  was  all  right." 

"And  you  went  in?" 

"Yes,  the  doorkeeper  pointed  to  a  man  and 
told  me  to  go  over  and  give  him  the  letter — 
that  he  was  Mr.  Hammerstein.  It  was  so  dark  I 
could  hardly  see — coming  in  from  the  sunlight 
— but  I  walked  over  and  saw  a  man  in  his  shirt 
sleeves  at  work  cutting  a  hole  in  the  stage. 
I  supposed  he  was  some  carpenter  and  asked 
if  he  could  tell  me  where  I  could  find  Mr. 
Hammerstein.      He  said  I  was  talking  to  him. 

"I  thought  it  strange  that  Mr.  Hammerstein 
should  be  in  his  shirt  sleeves  so  asked  him  if  he 
was  Mr.  Oscar  Hammerstein.  He  said  he  was 
sorry  to  say  that  that  was  his  name,  and  he 
kept  right  on  working.  I  waited  until  he  had 
finished  sawing  a  board  and  then  when  he 
looked  up  I  gave  him  your  letter." 

"Did  he  read  it?" 

"Why,  of  course,  and  told  me  to  follow  him. 
We  walked  past  the  boxes,  down  into  the 
orchestra  and  up  an  aisle  to  his  office." 

•*And?" 

"He  asked  me  if  I  had  ever  been  on  the 
stage  and  I  told  him  I  never  had." 

"Whatl"  ejaculated  Smiths— "you  said 
that?" 

"Had  Miss  lima  attempted  to  mislead  him" 
I  said,  "he  would  have  detected  it  in  a  minute. 
She  was  not  talking  to  a  "boob."  He  would 
have  wanted  to  know  when,  where,  and  with 
whom." 

"He  inquired  if  I  could  sing;  and  I  said, 
'No;'  then  he  asked  if  I  could  dance  and  I 
said,  'No.* 

"Oh  me  I  oh  my  I"  said  Smith. 

"And  what  then?"  I  asked. 

"Then  he  gave  me  a  letter  and  told  nne  if  I 
did  not  procure  an  engagement  to  drop  in  and 


74 

see  him  next  week.     The  letter  was  addressed 
to  Mr.  Witmark." 

"WitmarkI      What  Witmark>" 

**The  Witmark  Musical  Library  an  J  Agency." 

"What  did  Mr.  Witmark  say?" 

"He  asked  if  I  could  sing,  and  I  told  him  I 
could  not."  Then  Miss  lima  proceeded  to 
tell  how  Mr.  Witmark  had  given  her  a  card  to 
Mr.  Ashland. 

"Ashland I      What  Ashland?" 

"Mr.  Wilfred  Ashland — manager  of  the 
Witmark  Agency." 

"And  what  did  he  have  to  say?" 

"He  wanted  to  know  if  I  was  an  alto,  a 
contralto  or  a  soprano,  and  I  told  him  I  wasn't 
anything." 

"And  then  what?" 

"Then  he  thought  I  might  answer  the  pur- 
pose and  gave  me  a  letter  to  Mr.  Aborn." 

"Aborn!      What  Aborn?" 

"The  Aborn  Opera  Company." 

"And  what  did  he  want?" 

"He  wanted  to  know  what  I  could  do." 

"And  when  you  told  him  you  couldn't  do 
an3rthing?" 

"He  signed  the  contract — there  is  his  name 
— and  Wednesday  I  am  to  begin  rehearsing  at 
the  Herald  Square  Theatre.  Isn't  it  grand? 
Just  think  of  it  I  I  can  hardly  wait  for  the  day 
to  come.  How  shall  I  ever  repay  you  for 
your  kindness?  To-morrow  Mother  is  coming 
dow^n  to  see  you — to  thank  you — to  arrange 
matters — to  pay  you." 

"Do  not  talk  about  pay;  we  are  indebted 
to  you;  you  have  taught  us  more  about  the 
business  than  we  ever  knew  before,"   I  said. 

"Yes — damn  the  pay,  "  said  Smith.  "These 
names  are  worth  money  to  us.  We  should 
pay  you,  not  you  us;"  and  then,  apprehensive 
lest   I    should    think   him    too    liberal,    without 


75 

making  it  clear  to  lima  he  gave  me  to  under- 
stand he  had,  when  out  earlier  in  the  after- 
noon, effected  an  extension  of  credit  with  the 
groceryman,  and  we  were  now  on  "easy 
street"  for  at  least  tw^o  days  to  come. 

lima  Salter  was  the  first  person  ever  placed 
by  me,  directly  or  indirectly,  on  the  stage;  and 
as  I  look  now  at  her  picture,  which  she  signed 
and  gave  to  me  with  her  best  wishes  years  ago, 
it  takes  me  back  to  the  old  tin  sign,  the  little 
old  dingy  office  looking  out  on  the  airshaft,  and 
the  loaf  of  bread. 

This  was  one  case:  I  could  cite  hundreds — 
yes,  thousands —  some  less,  some  more  path- 
etic; I  could  fill  volumes,  I  could  write  of 
successes  and  of  failures,  of  hopes  blasted  and 
of  hopes  realized;  I  could  mention  names  now 
known  on  both  sides  of  the  water,  which  were 
unheard  of  when  first  entered  on  my  books. 
I  have  placed  young  women  and  young  men  on 
the  stage  who  have  raised  themselves  and  those 
dear  to  them  from  want  to  affluence;  but 
these  were  the  exceptions;  the  majority  only 
made  a  living,  yet  were  none  the.  less  grateful ; 
and  I  can  show  many  letters,  sincere  letters  of 
heartfelt  gratitude,  which  any  man  might  feel 
proud  to  own.  Therefore,  if  you  believe 
happiness  consists  in  making  others  happy,  you 
can  understand  how  happy  I  was  during  the 
years  in  which  I  was  engaged  in  the  theatrical 
agency  business.  They  were  the  six  happiest 
years  of  my  life. 


76 


CHAPTER  IV 

The  next  day  Mrs.  Salter  called  to  adjust 
what  she  believed  was  her  indebtedness  to  me. 
I  explained  it  was  Mr.  Witmark  who  had  pro- 
cured the  engagment  and  that  he  would  ex- 
pect the  commission.  Although  Mrs.  Salter 
agreed  that  this  was  proper,  she  thought  I  also 
should  be  compensated  as  it  was  due  to  my 
personal  influence  with  Mr.  Hammerstein  that 
lima  had  met  with  success.  "He  was  so  very 
considerate  to  my  daughter  after  reading  your 
note  of  introduction,"  she  said.  But  I  ex- 
plained that  Mr.  Hammerstein  did  not  know 
me;  furthermore,  I  did  not  know  Mr.  Witmark, 
Mr.  Ashland,  or  Mr.  Aborn;  never  had  heard 
of  them  until  Miss  lima  enlightened  me. 

This  surprised  her  but  nevertheless  she  was 
insistent  and  left  a  five-dollar  bill  on  my  desk. 
The  audacity  of  desperation  had  brought  us 
success,  and  both  Smith  and  myself  were  now 
sure  there  was  money  in  the  business.  Three 
months  later  we  were  not  so  sanguine.  The 
busy  season  had  opened  and  closed  and  our 
gross    receipts    amounted    to    fifteen    dollars. 

This  was  "poor  picking;"  we  both  looked 
seedy;  it  seemed  a  forlorn  hope;  seemed  as 
if  we  could  not  hold  out  another  day  and  yet 
we  struggled  on.  I  kept  working  and  Smith 
kept  borrowing.  After  six  months  of  this 
"hand-to-mouth"  living  we  decided  to  drop 
the  price  from  five  to  two  dollars,  and  our 
receipts  quadrupled.  This  was  not  saying 
much,  but  it  enabled  us  to  come  a  little  nearer 
to  making  ends  meet. 


77 

Occasionally  some  tragedian  out  of  a  job 
would  drop  in  and  quote  Shakespeare  to  us, 
and  owing  to  our  forbearance,  our  ability  to 
listen,  also  to  the  fact  that  we  invariably  ex- 
pressed admiration,  we  became  more  or  less 
popular  with  them  and  they  did  us  many  a 
good  turn.  Not  that  we  could  borrow  from 
them — we  did  not  make  the  attempt.  It  is 
well  known  in  the  profession  that  "tragedians 
seldom  eat."  But  through  them  we  learned 
that  the  Witmarks  were  one  of  the  most  re- 
liable agencies  in  New  York,  and  that  Mr. 
Ashland  of  this  agency  through  whom  we  were 
now  transacting  business  was  universally  liked. 
Nothing  ruffled  him,  not  even  an  impossible 
voice. 

"Why  do  you  not  go  up  and  pay  your 
respects  to  Mr.  Ashland?"  Smith  would  say 
to  me.  And  I  would  say  "What's  the  use? 
Fie  is  placing  eight  out  of  every  ten  we  send 
up;  why  not  let  well  enough  alone?"  And  so 
the  months  rolled  by  until  a  new  Spring  season 
opened.  Then  business  "picked  up"  and  we 
spruced  up;  we  even  went  so  far  as  to  inquire 
the  cost  of  having  a  telephone  installed  in  our 
office. 

Just  about  this  time  Mr.  Ashland  wrote  a 
letter  requesting  us  not  to  send  applicants  after 
four  P.  M.,  as  after  that  hour  he  attended  to 
his  correspondence.  This  letter  proved  valu- 
able; it  was  prima  facie  evidence  that  we  had 
a  connection  with  a  real  theatrical  firm.  It 
was  typewritten  on  a  Witmark  Musical  Library 
and  Agency  letterhead,  and  to  preserve  it  I 
had  it  framed. 

We  could  now  say  to  a  prospective  client, 
"Pay  us  our  fee,  and  if  you  are  not  satisfied 
with  the  position  come  back  and  we  will  re- 
fund the  two  dollars."  "But,"  we  would  add, 
"there  is  not  much  likelihood  of  this  as  you 


78 

can  see  we  are  transacting  business  with  the 
leading  theatrical  agency  of  the  city."  Then 
the  framed  letter  would  be  shown  to  the  appli- 
cant. It  worked  wonders;  it  was  a  turning 
point  in  our  business — this  Ashland  letter — 
and  one  week  after  receiving  it  I  signed  a 
contract  with  the  telephone  trust. 

It  was  a  great  day  for  us,  the  day  the  tele- 
phone was  installed.  Not  that  we  at  this 
time  had  any  special  use  for  the  thing,  but 
others  found  it  a  convenience.  There  are 
many  telephone  beggars  in  the  world. 

Three  years  passed  and  although  Mr.  Ash- 
land and  I  had  never  met,  he  knew  my  voice 
and  I  knew  his  over  the  telephone.  We  had 
gradually  without  contemplating  it  drifted  into 
one  of  those  nautually  advantageous  arrange- 
ments which  often  prove  more  lasting  and 
profitable  than  a  "cast-iron"  contract. 

One  day  Mr.  Palmer  of  the  Tams  Agency 
called  to  say  he  could  place  young  women 
with  good  voices.  This  was  a  new  connec- 
tion. A  tragedian — ^a  friend  of  ours — had  in- 
formed him  that  when  it  came  to  chorus 
singers  we  were  headquarters.  Then  other 
agents  called  and  a  still  greater  outlet  opened 
to  us.  To  meet  this  demand  I  increased  my 
advertisements.  Finally,  as  it  became  "noised 
about"  that  we  could  supply  the  demand,  we 
found  ourselves  doing  business  with  all  the 
members  of  the  theatrical  agents'  union. 

And  so  our  business  prospered.  Many  an 
air  castle  eventually  has  been  erected  on  solid 
ground,  and  we  had  come  up  on  a  solid 
foundation.  Our  business  had  made  its  own 
capital,  and  instead  of  boards,  at  the  ex- 
piration of  the  first  year,  we  found  ourselves 
walking  on  ingrain  carpet.  At  the  end  of  the 
second,  tapestry  Brussels;  at  the  end  of  the 
third,   Wilton  velvet;   and   at   the   end   of   the 


79 

fourth  year  the  trouble  commenced. 

Up  to  this  time  our  business  had  been  con- 
fined to  the  agents.  We  had  not  dealt  with, 
and  were  not  known  to,  the  theatrical 
managers.  When  an  agent  received  an  order 
from  a  manager  for  chorus  singers  he  would 
simply  order  us  to  send  them  to  his  office. 

It  was  true  applicants  were  obliged  to  pay, 
in  addition  to  the  agent's,  our  two  dollar  fee. 
But  as  we  kept  in  touch  with  every  agent  in 
the  city,  we  knew  when  and  where  to  send 
clients,  and  could  not  only  save  them  time  but 
a  vast  amount  of  tramping  about. 

The  agents  were  not  averse  to  receiving 
credit  for  being  able  to  fill  any  order  without 
delay,  but  it  was  my  advertisements  which 
brought  the  people  to  me  thus  enabling  me  to 
execute  the  orders  I  received  from  agents,  and 
in  turn  enabling  them  to  execute  orders  they 
received  from  managers.  So  long  as  this 
state  of  affairs  continued  the  agents  were  my 
friends.  They  were  making  money,  my  clients 
were  paying  them  ten  dollars  while  they  paid 
me  two,  and  yet  half  of  my  receipts  were 
going  back  into  the  newspapers  whereas  the 
agents  were  not  obliged  to  expend  one  dollar 
in  advertising.  Furthermore,  the  agents  de- 
manded an  additional  fee  for  each  engagement 
procured,  but  I  only  exacted  one  two-dollar 
registration  fee  per  year.  For  this,  I  obligated 
myself  to  procure  any  number  of  stage  en- 
gagments  a  client  might  desire. 

This  charge  was  so  moderate  that  without 
solicitation  the  majority  of  my  clients  returned 
year  after  year.  It  was  owing  to  these  renew- 
als that  I  could  see  a  prosperous  future,  even 
if  the  agents  did  regard  me  as  a  convenience. 
It  was  because  they  regarded  me  a  valuable 
asset  that  they  kept  my  name  under  cover  and 
so    kept    the    managers    from    discovering    the 


60 

true  source  from  which  the  supply  came.  But, 
the  young  women  (my  cUents)  finally  "let  the 
cat  out  of  the  bag,"  and  then,  as  stated,  at  the 
end  of  the  fourth  year  the  trouble  commenced. 

It  happened  this  way:  Before  a  show  open- 
ed the  agents  through  whom  the  performers 
were  engaged  were  permitted  to  attend  the 
final  dress  rehearsal,  and  at  its  completion  the 
chorus  was  lined  up  on  the  stage  and  the 
manager  and  agents  went  down  the  line  and 
checked  off  the  names.  This  was  done  to 
avoid  errors  in  remitting  commissions.  If  an 
agent  claimed  he  had  procured  the  engage- 
ment for  a  certain  person  and  that  person  dis- 
puted the  claim  the  matter  was  adjusted.  But 
if  no  dispute  arose  the  person  engaged  signed 
an  order  authorizing  the  manager  to  deduct 
half  of  the  second  week's  salary  and  remit 
same  to  the  agent  entitled  to  receive  it. 

To  go  down  the  line  of  a  large  chorus  and 
identify  the  right  one,  or  the  right  dozen,  is  no 
easy  task.  A  brunette  on  the  street  might  be 
a  henna  beauty  on  the  stage;  a  chestnut  brown 
might  be  a  chemical  blonde.  However,  de- 
spite the  makeup,  were  all  the  young  women 
truthful  it  would  not  be  so  difficult  to  identify 
them.  But  some  women  are  given  to  ex- 
aggeration (except  when  talking  of  their  own 
age)  and  some  of  these  chorus  girls  would  give 
the  agent  one  name  and  another  to  the  mana- 
ger and  at  the  last  moment  "spring"  still 
another  on  both  by  exchanging  names  with 
each  other;  anything,  in  fact,  to  mix  matters 
and    "do"    the  agent  out  of  his  commissions. 

It  was  during  these  "lineups*  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  Fall  season,  after  I  had  been  in 
business  four  years,  that  my  name  w^as  sud- 
denly brought  to  the  attention  of  the  leading 
managers  of  New  York  City.  I  would  receive 
an  order  from  an  agent;  I  might  be  talking  at 


81 

the  time  in  my  private  office  to  a  young 
woman;  forty  or  fifty  might  be  in  an  outer 
office.  I  would  send  the  young  woman  to  the 
agent  and  request  the  office  boy  to  pass  in  the 
others  one  at  a  time,  intending  to  send  each 
one  to  the  agent,  but  he — the  boy — would  in- 
form me  they  had  all  left,  just  gone,  gone  with 
the  young  woman  I  had  sent  to  the  agent. 
But  they  had  no  intention  of  calling  on  the 
agent.  Oh,  no!  They  were  going  to  call  on 
the  manager  and  so  evade  paying  the  agent. 
One  was  enough  to  pay,  and  after  she  had 
called  on  the  agent  and  ascertained  when  and 
where  to  go  she  would  post  the  others.  In  this 
unfair  way  the  agent  instead  of  making  many 
commissions  would  make  only  one. 

It  was  a  "mean  trick"  and  I  tried  in  every 
way  to  prevent  it  but  was  outwitted  at  every 
turn.  There  might  be  two  or  three  young 
women  in  my  office  when  an  order  came  in 
and  I  would  send  them  up,  and  thirty  minutes 
later  the  agent  would  "phone"  that  only  one 
had  called,  but  that  there  was  a  bevy  of  them 
at  the  theatre  and  that  this  kind  of  business 
must  stop.  They  were  my  clients  but  how 
"tipped  off;"  how  they  reached  the  theatre  so 
quickly  was  an  enigma.  Still  I  could  not  make 
the  agent  believe  this.  Seemingly  I  had  not 
acted  in  good  faith.  As  a  result  of  this  un- 
derhanded business  on  the  part  of  many  of 
my  clients  when  it  came  to  the  final  "lineup," 
roll  call — not  merely  in  the  theatres  but  in  all 
the  rehearsal  halls  of  the  city — I  found  myself 
placed  in  an  awkward  position. 

The  fact  that  I  was  disgusted,  not  alone  with 
certain  tricky  clients  but  with  young  women 
not  from  my  office  whom  I  did  not  know  and 
yet  who  claimed  to  be  clients  of  mine,  did  not 
help  matters. 

It  did  not  help  the  agents,  it  simply  made  it 


82 

look  worse;  and  the  agents  stood  by  inwardly 
berating  me  while  they  heard  my  name  called 
all  along  the  line. 

A  manager  would  say  to  Miss "Which 

agent  sent  you  to  us? 

"Mr.  Flagg." 

"Flagg?  We  do  not  know  him;  never  heard 
of  any  such  agent." 

"Well,  he  is  my  agent  and  he  sent  me." 

"And  you?" 

"Mr.  Flagg." 

;;whati" 

"Yes.      He's  my  agent  also." 

"And  you?" 

"Mr.  Flagg." 

"How  is  it  with  you?" 

"Mr.  Flagg." 

"And  is  Flagg  your  agent  too?" 

"Yes,  sir." 

"And  yours?" 

"Yes,  sir." 

"Well,  who  the  blankety  blank  blank  is 
Flagg,  anyway?  We  gave  him  no  order  and 
will  pay  him  no  commission." 

"Mr.  Flagg  asks  no  commission  from  you." 

"What!" 

"He  only  charges  two  dollars  a  year;  we 
have  paid  him;  and  can  have  all  the  stage 
engagements  we  want." 

This  was  news  to  the  managers  and  they 
commenced  to  have  visions;  commenced  to  put 
two  and  two  together;  to  realize  that  for  some 
time  they  had  been  employing  my  people  al- 
though engaging  them  through  the  agents.  It 
was  now  clear,  they  could  see  it  all ;  and  hence- 
forth would  deal  with  me  direct,  they  would 
cut  out  the  middleman — the  agent. 

Subsequently  every  grand  and  light  opera 
manager  in  the  City  did  business  with  me. 
This  is  a  sweeping  assertion;  yet  I  bar  none. 


83 

Therefore,  it  can  be  seen  that  I  had  uninten- 
tionally curtailed  the  income  the  agents  had 
formerly  received. 

I  had  no  patent  on  my  way  of  doing  busi- 
ness. Any  person  could  have  adopted  the 
same  method,  only  it  might  have  proved  a 
trifle  discouraging  at  the  beginning  as  it  had  to 
me.  Perhaps  more  so,  as  he  would  have  to 
compete  with  me;  whereas,  I  had  had  no  com- 
petitor. I  did  not  try  to  compete  with  the 
agents.  I  simply  created  a  business  along 
lines  offering  the  least  resistance  and  called  my 
establishment  a  theatrical  bureau  of  inform- 
ation. There  never  had  been  such  a  bureau 
and  there  may  never  be  another. 

When  the  agents  became  apprehensive  as  to 
what  might  happen  to  them  they  set  about  to 
rectify  what  they  were  pleased  to  term  an  evil. 
First  they  called  a  meeting;  a  committee  was 
appointed  to  call  on  me,  to  induce  me  to  join 
their  Union.  These  men  placed  the  matter 
before  me  in  every  light.  They  were  court- 
eous, but  cross-questioned  me  and  ascertained 
that  my  advertising  bills  averaged  over  two 
hundred  dollars  a  week;  and  that  my  net  pro- 
fits compared  with  the  magnitude  of  my  busi- 
ness were  trivial.  They  asked  if  it  was  my 
desire  to  play  the  "dog  in  the  manger,"  and 
other  questions  disagreeable  to  answer. 

That  evening  at  dinner  I  talked  the  matter 
over  with  Smith,  and  we  felt  there  was  a  storm 
brewing.  We  could  feel  it  in  the  air.  "If  we 
do  not  tie  up  with  the  agents  there  is  going  to 
be  trouble."  "And  if  we  do,  what  then?" 
inquired  Smith.  "We  will  be  doomed,"  said 
I.  "The  day  we  join  their  Union  and  change 
our  method  of  doing  business  we  shall  have  no 
business.  But  if  we  continue  on  the  lines  we 
have  adopted  we  shall  soon  have  it  all;  We 
are  the  fashion;  they  are  coming  our  way;  but 


64 

if  we  charge  as  much  as  the  others,  they  will 
go  the  other  way." 

Smith  agreed,  and  the  next  day  I  sent  a 
letter  to  the  agents  declining  the  honor  con- 
ferred by  asking  me  to  join  their  Mutual  Pro- 
tective Association. 

A  few  weeks  later  ugly  rumors  floated 
through  the  air.  My  friends  heard  "things." 
But  the  "things"  they  heard  and  the  "things" 
I  heard  the  others  (those  who  spread  the  re- 
ports) had  heard  from  others  who  also  claimed 
to  have  heard.  It  was  all  hearsay,  and  it 
seemed  as  if  I  never  should  discover  the  orig- 
inators. But  these  things  all  "come  out  in  the 
wash."  It  is  only  necessary  to  wait,  and  some 
time,  someone  will  say  something,  and  you 
will  know  it  all.  I  remained  calm  and  waited 
almost  three  years,  and  now  know  it  all — the 
guilty  and  the  innocent. 

To  display  enterprise  is  commendable,  but 
to  adopt  sneaking  methods  to  "down"  a  com- 
petitor is  contemptible.  A  man  who  will  re- 
sort to  an  anonymous  communication  to  kill 
the  reputation  of  another  is  an  assassin — he 
stabs  a  man  in  the  back. 

By  attending  to  my  own  affairs  I  had  built 
up  a  business  that  threatened  the  very^JEfst- 
ence  of  certain  agents.  At  least  they  believed 
such  to  be  the  case,  but  this  did  not  justify 
them  in  circulating  dastardly  lies  about  me.  It 
seems  unbelievable  that  men  however  exasper- 
ated could  resort  to  the  despicable  acts  per- 
petrated upon  me.  In  one  day  thirty  anony- 
mous letters  were  sent  to  editors  of  news- 
papers. They  were  written  with  a  view  of 
cutting  off  my  source  of  supply  by  having  my 
advertisements  stopped.  If  rejected  I  could 
not  advertise  for  stage  applicants;  and  my  ad- 
vertisements owing  to  these  letters  teeming 
with  false  statements  were  rejected. 


85 

But  letter  writing  is  a  game  two  can  play, 
and  I  decided  to  send  a  little  missive  to  the 
editors  who  had  received  the  anonymous 
communications.      A  copy  of  my  letter  follows: 

New  York,   1905 
Business  Manager: 

Dear  Sir — If  the  circulation  of  your  paper 
were  doubtful  1  would  not  trouble  to  writ© 
this  letter;  but  I  know  from  experience  it  is 
a  valuable  advertising  medium  important  to 
the  welfare  of  my  business,  and  I  trust,  there- 
fore, you  will  give  this  letter  consideration. 

For  a  long  time  I  have  advertised  in  your 
paper,  but  a  few  months  ago  w^as  warned 
by  certain  persons  (if  you  wish,  will  send 
you  their  names  and  addresses)  that  my 
advertisements  would  be  rejected  by  you, 
also  by  other  editors.  This  warning  proved 
true,  still  1  believe  when  you  are  acquainted 
with  the  facts  I  shall  be  reinstated.  They 
are  as  follows: — September  9th,  1904,  I  re- 
ceived a  letter  from  the  Theatrical  Agents' 
Protective  Association  of  New  York  City 
requesting  me  to  be  present  at  a  meeting 
to  be  held  in  the  Gilsey  House  the  following 
Tuesday.  I  paid  no  attention  to  this  in- 
vitation, and  a  few  days  later  received  an- 
other communication,  of  which  the  following 
is  a   copy: 

THE  CO-OPERATIVE  MUTUAL  THEATRI- 
CAL PROTECTIVE  ASSOCIATION 

Jas.  J.  Armstrong,  Pres.    Wm.  Morris,  Treas. 
10  Union  Square  43   W.   28th  St. 

Arthur  W.  Tams,  Secy.,    109  West   28th  St. 
New  York,  Sept.    17.    1904. 
Jared  Flagg,  Esq. 

Dear  Sir — A  meeting  of  the  members  of 
the  Theatrical  Protective  Association  will  be 
held  in  Elks  Hall,  Majestic  Theatre  Building, 
59th  Street,  next  Tuesday  evening,  8  o'clock. 
We  would  be  pleased  to  have  you  present 
and  receive  the  benefit  of  your  counsel. 
Yours  truly, 

Arthur  W.  Tams,   Secy. 

I  thanked  them  for  their  courtesy,  but  did 
not  attend. 


86 

The  same  month,  September  28th,  Hein- 
rich  Conreid  notified  me  by  letter  he  would 
try  voices  and  hear  my  clients  sing  at  3  P.  M. 
the  following  Wednesday  in  the  Metropolitan 
Opera  House. 

To  prove  this,  I  can  show  Mr.  Conreid's 
letter.  To  prove  I  was  unable  to  fill  the 
order  I  can  produce  fifty  witnesses — young 
women  who  were  "afraid  to  risk  it."  "Risk 
what?"  I  asked.  "Being  arrested,"  they 
said.  "For  what?"  said  I.  "For  being  your 
clients,"  1  was  told.  And  then  I  discovered 
my  clients  were  being  summoned  to  appear 
before  the  District  Attorney.  Two  had  been 
taken  from  the  New  York  Theatre,  three 
from  their  homes  in  Brooklyn,  two  from  in 
front  of  my  office,  etc.  Some  person  or 
persons  (probably  under  the  impression  it 
was  a  duty  they  ow^ed  to  themselves — (not  to 
me)  had  informed  the  District  Attorney  that 
I  was  sending  people  to  improper  persons. 
But  the  District  Attorney  (in  justice  to  me) 
before  taking  action  appointed  Assistant 
District  Attorney  C.  W.  Appleton  to  in- 
vestigate. I  also  did  a  little  investigating, 
and,  although  my  clients  had  been  warned 
by  Mr.  Appleton  not  to  talk,  w^omen  will 
talk  and  I  ascertained  who  were  the  in- 
stigators. 

I  employed  detectives;  w^e  examined  w^it- 
nesses;  and  one  member  after  another  of  the 
Theatrical  Agents'  Association  became  im- 
plicated. Depositions  to  prove  this  are  now 
in  the  hands  of  my  attorneys,  Caruth, 
Ziegler  &  Caruth.  Having  accumulated  this 
evidence  I  called  on  the  District  Attorney 
and  as  soon  as  the  facts  were  placed  before 
him  he  accorded  me  protection.  This  I  can 
prove  by  a  letter  dated  October  7,  1904,  ad- 
dressed to  me  and  signed  personally  by 
William  Travers  Jerome.  I  can  also  prove 
it  by  his  acts,  which  speak  louder  than  w^ords. 
Months  have  elapsed  and  the  fact  that  he 
has  acted  towards  me  as  he  would  to  any 
reputable  citizen  is  evidence  he  had  no 
occasion  to  act  otherwise. 

The  President  of  this  Protective  Associa- 
tion and  certain  of  its  members  failing  there- 
fore in  their  attempt  to  inveigle  the  District 
Attorney  into  "co-operating"  with  them  and 


87 

utilizing  his  office  for  their  benefit  and  mjr 
injury  concocted  another  scheme,  namely;  to 
cut  off  my  source  of  supply  and  at  their 
subsequent  meetings  boasted  that  they  vrould 
put  me  out  of  business  by  having  my  ad- 
vertisements stopped.  Four  witnesses,  mem- 
bers of  reputable  theatrical  firms,  admit 
these   threats  were   made   and  will   so   testify. 

To  stop  my  legitimate  advertisements, 
illegitimate  complaints  were  sent  out,  and  as 
a  result  many  advertisements,  including  those 
which  were  to  have  appeared  in  your  paper 
have  been  sent  back  marked  "declined." 
These  and  the  officially  dated  envelopes  in 
which  they  were  returned  I  have  and  can 
place  in  evidence  to  prove  that  thirty  com- 
plaints were  made  in  five  different  states  at 
the  same  time — New  York,  New  Jersey, 
Pennsylvania,  Connecticut  and  Massachusetts. 

Why  these  preconcerted  complaints?  Why 
are  certain  members  of  the  Agents'  Protect- 
ive Association  so  anxious  to  end  my  career 
as  a  theatrical  agent?  Are  they  impelled 
by  a  desire  to  do  good?  Are  they  actuated 
by   high   principles  or   high   commissions? 

The  regulation  commission  is  one-half  the 
second  week's  salary.  My  charges  are  less, 
but  at  times,  if  I  have  no  orders,  I  recom- 
mend to  my  clients  agents  who  have  orders. 
A  few  years  ago  I  was  obliged  to  send  them 
all  to  agents  for  the  reason  that  no  manager 
favored  me  with  an  order.  Did  the  agents 
complain  then?  Did  they  question  my 
morality  then? 

There  is  not  a  theatrical  agent  in  this 
city  who  has  not  placed  clients  of  mine  on 
the  stage.  The  very  men  now  denouncing 
me  have  made  commissions  they  could  not 
have  made  without  me.  If  any  member  of 
their  Union  doubts  this  statement  I  can  re- 
fresh his  memory  by  submitting  a  list  of  my 
clients  he  has  placed. 

Their  Secretary  alone  has  procured  en- 
gagements for  over  eighteen  hundred.  All 
its  members  are  not  against  me,  and  nothing 
herein  stated  is  intended  to  reflect  on  Mr. 
F.  C.  Palmer  of  the  Tams  Agency  who  has 
invariably  treated  me  and  my  clients  with 
respect.  The  same  is  true  of  Mr.  W.  Ash- 
land of  the  Witmark  Agency.     This  firm  has 


88 

secured  stage  engagements  for  more  than 
three  thousand  five  hundred  of  my  clients, 
and  the  many  courtesies  extended  by  the 
Witmarks  have  been  appreciated  by  my 
clients  and  by  me.  We  are  also  indebted  to 
Walter  J.  Plimmer,  Frank  Melville,  Matt 
Grau,  Frank  Forrester  and  others  who  have 
not  and  would  not  stoop  to  underhand  com- 
petition. 

It  took  time  but  when  it  dawned  on  the 
theatrical  managers  that  they  were  -mploy- 
ing  my  people,  although  engaging  them  in- 
directly, I  commenced  to  receive  orders 
direct.  Klaw  &  Erlanger,  Frohman,  Conried, 
Savage,  Belasco,  Shubert,  Hammerstein, 
Thompson,  Dundy,  Brady,  Aborn,  Fisher, 
Ryley,  Harris,  Hyde,  Behman,  Hill,  Brad- 
hurst,  Currie,  Ade,  Ziegfeld,  Liebler,  Keith, 
Proctor,  Field,  Lederer,  Whitney  and  Frank 
L.  Perley  not  only  have  but  are  at  the 
present  time  employing  clients  of  mine.  I 
can  produce  books,  letters,  contracts  and 
witnesses   to   prove  this   statement. 

The  person  does  not  live  who  can  name 
a  first-class  light  opera  company  in  the 
United  States  (and  this  means  from  the 
Atlantic  to  the  Pacific)  in  which  my  clients 
do  not  at  the  present  time  take  part.  I 
mention  these  facts  to  show  that  if  some 
of  the  agents  do  not  approve  of  my  modern 
methods  of  doing  business  the  niembers  of 
the  Profession  seem  to  think  pretty  well  of 
my  work  as  an  agent. 

For  procuring  an  engagement  and  keeping 
a  client  at  work  one  entire  year  I  charge 
two  dollars.  All  told  I  have  over  seven 
thousand  yearly  clients,  and  this  low  com- 
mission is  pleasing  to  them,  agreeable  to  the 
managers  and  satisfactory  to  me.  But  the 
agents  object.  They  want  protection.  They 
have  organized  a  society  (eighty-eight  in 
number)  for  mutual  protection  and  they  want 
it.  They  want  you  and  every  editor  to 
"co-operate"  and  aid  them  in  protecting 
themselves  against  my  competition.  Pre- 
viously, that  is,  before  I  did  business  with 
the  foremost  managers  in  the  theatrical 
w^orld  it  was  all  right  but  now  it  is  all  wrong 
— they  say — for  you  to  permit  my  ad- 
vertisements to   appear.      If  you  continue  to 


89 

do  so  the  members  of  the  Profession  will 
continue  to  patronize  me  and  in  the  estima- 
tion of  many  niembers  of  the  Agents'  Pro- 
tective Association  this  is  cruel  to  them. 

The  agents  do  not  support  the  members 
of  the  Profession,  the  Profession  supports 
the  agents;  and  if  the  agents  are  to  be 
deprived  from  making  the  high  commission 
which  according  to  the  by-laws  of  their  own 
society  they  are  entitled  to  make  who  is 
going  to  support  them?  This  is  the  problem 
and  special  meetings  have  been  called  to 
solve  it.  They  have  even  invited  me  to  give 
them  the  benefit  of  my  counsel  as  per  the 
copy  of  their  letter  hereinbefore  referred  to. 

But  1  maintain  that  the  young  .jwomen  need 
the  money.  Those  who  do  not  agree  with 
me  and  who  do  not  know  me  personally 
and  who  are  not  acquainted  with  the  facts 
and  who  do  not  wish  to  be  acquainted  with 
them  say  my  one  aim  in  life  is  to  decoy 
stage-struck  girls  and  defraud  them.  The 
charge  is  almost  too  absurd  to  notice. 
Section  5,  Chapter  432  of  the  Laws  of  1904 
reads — in  part — "in  case  the  applicant  shall 
not  accept  or  obtain  employment  through 
such  agency  then  such  licensed  person  shall 
on  demand  repay  the  full  amount  of  said 
fee."  Has  the  law  left  any  loop-hole  here 
to  swindle  the  unwary?  And  if  it  had, 
would  I,  for  the  sake  of  a  two-dollar  fee, 
place  in  jeopardy  a  one  thousand  dollar 
bond,  which  I  have,  in  conformity  with  the 
license  lawr,  deposited  with  the  City  of  New 
York?  But  bond  or  no  bond  would  I  ruin 
a  paying  business  established  by  honest 
dealing  and  five  years  of  hard  work  by  now 
conducting  it   dishonestly? 

Some  of  these  agents,  who  attribute  the 
falling  off  in  their  business  to  me,  pretend 
that  their  finer  sensibilities  have  been  shock- 
ed because  my  clients  pose.  Owing  to  their 
influence  a  great  hue  and  cry  has  been 
raised  in  the  theatrical  papers.  And  yet  I 
have  never  exacted  or  accepted  a  fee  from 
a  stage  applicant  for  securing  posing  engage- 
ments. Nor  have  I  ever  accepted  one  dollar 
from  any  firm  or  person  who  has  given  a 
client  of  mine  a  stage  or  a  posing  engage- 
ment.     This  fact  I  emphasize  because  reports 


90 

by  my  competitors  are  being  circulated  to  the 
effect  that  I  receive  the  largest  kind  of  fees; 
that  my  two  dollar  yearly  fee  is  a  mere  sub- 
terfuge; and  it  would  be  impossible  for  me  to 
meet  over-head  expenses  on  so  insignificant 
an  amount.  These  aspersions  are  made  to 
create  the  impression  that  I  must  from  the 
necessity  of  the  case  be  in  league  with  dis- 
reputable resorts  of  one  kind  or  another. 
But  there  is  not  a  word  of  truth  in  the 
malicious  reports.      It's  all   one  damnable  lie. 

That  my  clients  have  earned  money  by 
posing  I  admit.  There  is  not  a  periodical  or 
pictorial  or  fashion  magazine  issued  by  a 
daily  or  Sunday  or  evening  paper  in  which 
pictures  of   my   clients  have  not   appeared. 

If  all  the  papers  were  to  reject  my  ad- 
vertisements how  would  I  fill  your  orders? 
If  you  wish  I  will  send  you  a  list  of  my  young 
vromen  clients  who  have  posed  for  your 
fashion-plate  artists  and  commercial  photog- 
raphers. 

Among  the  illustrators,  Charles  Dana  Gib- 
son and  Howard  Chandler  Christy  are  my 
largest  customers.  Among  the  commercial 
photographers,  Eddowes  Brothers,  L.  S. 
White,  Sarony,  the  Tennele  Company,  the 
Fashion  Camera  Company,  the  Dry  Goods 
Economist,  Butterick's  and  the  Illustrated 
Milliner  are  my  largest  customers. 

To  rebut  the  testimony  of  slanderers,  I  can 
refer  not  only  to  these  and  others  but  to  an 
army  of  clients  ready  to  testify  that  they 
have  never  seen  a  thing  done,  heard  a  word 
spoken  or  a  question  asked  in  my  office 
■which  would  cause  umbrage  even  to  a  prude. 

If  those  who  intimate  my  office  is  not 
properly  conducted  dare  to  make  known 
their  identity,  I  would  gladly  give  them  an 
opportunity  to  prove  their  aspersions  in  a 
court  of  law.  But  they  are  afraid  to  face 
me.  If  you  can  show  me  one  complaint 
signed  by  a  bona-fide  client  of  mine  or  by 
her  parent  or  guardian,  I  will  never  ask  you 
to   insert   another  advertisement   for  me. 

The  possibility  of  a  client  of  mine  having 
just  cause  to  complain  is  too  remote  to  con- 
sider. The  law  does  not  compel  me  after 
accepting  a  fee  to  procure  an  engagement. 
It    merely    compels    me    to    refund    the    fee    if 


I  fail  to  procure  one  saLisfactory  to  the 
applicant.  It  is  optional  with  her  as  to 
whether  she  accepts  or  rejects  any  engage- 
ment I  may  offer.  I  have  no  jurisdiction  in 
the  matter.  Therefore,  if  I  comiply  w^ith  the 
law,  and  no  client  of  mine  has  ever  accused 
me  of  not  doing  so,  how  is  it  possible  for 
her  to  enter  a  just  complaint  against  me? 

Under  the  law  I  am  obliged  to  keep  a 
register  in  which  mu^t  be  recorded  the  names 
of  my  clients;  also  the  names  and  addresses 
of  those  to  whom  I  have  referred  clients  for 
work.  To  omit  to  enter  these  names  or  to 
substitute  a  false  one  constitutes  as  per 
section  four  of  the  license  law,  a  misde- 
meanor. 

This  register,  which  is  examined  bi- 
monthly by  government  officers,  I  am  willing 
to  place  at  your  disposal  to  prove  you  have 
never  received  a  complaint  against  me  that 
was  not  written  anonymously,  signed  ficti- 
tiously, or  by  some  person  purporting  to 
have  transacted  business  with  me,  but  whose 
name  does  not  appear  on  my  books.  The 
complaints  which  have  influenced  you  to 
reject  my  advertisements  have  been  made  by 
outsiders,  imposters,  pretenders,  mischief 
makers,  whose  aim  it  has  been  to  inflict- 
not  to  right — a  wrong. 

Yours  truly, 

JARED  FLAGG." 

This  letter  covered  the  ground;  and  after 
reading  it  and  investigating  the  matter,  every 
editor  of  every  paper  who  had  declined  my 
advertisements  accepted  them. 

And  what  did  the  members  of  the  Agents* 
Protective  Association  do  then?  Why,  they 
hired  a  hall — the  Grand  Central  Palace,  Forty- 
third  Street  and  Lexington  Avenue,  and  Janu- 
ary 6th,  1905,  invited  Frederick  L.  C.  Keating, 
at  that  time  License  Commissioner,  to  come 
and  hear  their  grievances.  Did  he  come?  He 
did,  and  what  is  more,  made  a  speech.  Hfc 
told  the  agents  how  much  respect  he  had  for 
them  and  how  little  for  the  man  who  would 
advertise  to  place  women  on  the  stage.     He  re- 


92 

frained  from  mentioning  my  name,  but  they 
all  knew  to  whom  he  referred.  The  more  he 
maligned  me  the  more  applause  he  received, 
and  he  grew  eloquent.  He  did  not  advocate 
my  two  dollars  yearly  fee,  but  approved  of 
the  regulation  fee;  and  hinted  that  they  might 
even  exact  from  the  members  of  the  Profession 
a  commission  equivalent  to  the  entire  first 
week's  salary  and  still  be  within  the  scope  of 
the  law. 

Mr.  Keating  was  only  thirty-two,  and  this 
sentiment,  emanating  from  one  so  young, 
elicited  prolonged  applause. 

After  he  finished  his  oration,  they  grasped 
his  hand,  pressed  it  with  fervor,  and  he  return- 
ed the  grip,  as  much  as  to  say,  leave  it  to  me. 
They  left  it,  and  what  did  he  do?  He  sent 
an  inspector — Mr.  G.  W.  Hamilton- — with  a 
stenographer  to  my  office  to  secure  a  list  of 
the  names  of  my  clients  and  customers.  Not 
a  few  but  hundreds,  beginning  with  A  and  not 
stopping  until  they  had  reached  Z.  These 
were  his  orders  and  Mr.  Hamilton  obeyed 
orders. 

And  what  did  Mr.  Keating  propose  to  do 
with  these  names?  My  clients  would  not  go 
to  him,  so  he  decided  to  go  to  them,  and  if 
possible  coerce  them  to  complain. 

To  revoke  my  license  without  jeopardizing 
his — his  license  to  act  as  License  Commissioner 
— it  would  be  necessary  to  produce  a  com- 
plainant, preferably  some  person  with  whom 
I  had  transacted  business.  It  was  for  this 
reason  he  wanted  the  list;  and  with  the  hope 
of  discovering  some  one  willing  to  appear 
against  me,  he  detailed  seven  inspectors  to 
scour  the  city  from  the  Battery  to  the  Bronx. 
But,  notwithstanding  that  they  interviewed 
hundreds  of  my  clients,  they  were  unable  to 
find    one   who   could,    would    or    did    make   a 


93 

complaint.  And  after  wasting  the  city's 
money,  Keating  gave  it  up  as  a  bad  job. 

In  the  meantime  I  was  doing  business.  The 
more  the  agents  kicked,  the  more  I  was  black- 
guarded, the  more  business  I  did.  It  is  our 
rankest  enemies,  not  our  loving  friends,  who 
advertise  us.  Actors  who  previously  had  never 
heard  of  me  now  called  and  registered. 
Managers  also  called,  and  I  was  literally 
"snowed-under"  with  orders.  At  times,  there 
was  standing  room  only  in  my  oflFices. 

In  addition  to  the  main  office  we  now  had 
five  branch  offices.  To  keep  them  all  in 
operation  I  issued,  in  addition  to  my  news- 
paper advertisements,  a  circular  of  which  the 
following  is  a  copy: 

"ADVICE  TO  THOSE  WHO  DENOUNCE  THE 
STAGjE. 

If  a  young  woman  is  good  looking  she 
knows  it;  she  does  not  have  to  be  told;  and 
if  obliged  to  support  herself  why  blame  her  for 
going  on  the  stage.  What  legitimate  vocation 
can  she  adopt  that  will  pay  so  well  or  afford 
so  many  opportunities  for  advancement? 

The  salaries  usually  paid  to  chorus  singers 
range  from  eighteen  to  thirty  dollars  a  week, 
and  'front-row'  or  'show'  girls  frequently  re- 
ceive more.  Furthermore,  if  a  young  woman 
displays  talent,  there  is  no  telling  how  high  a 
salary  she  may  command.  It  is  not,  however, 
always  a  case  of  money.  The  love  of  admir- 
ation, the  glitter,  the  excitement  of  the  life  and 
possibility  of  ultimate  fame  are  incentives. 

If  a  young  woman  is  imbued  with  the  idea 
that  she  may  make  the  hit  of  her  life  on  the 
stage  (and  every  great  actress  has  been  im- 
bued with  this  idea)  it  is  a  waste  of  time  to 
try  and  convince  her  she  may  make  the  mi»- 
take  of  her  life. 

In  denouncing  the  stage  you  make  her  more 


94 

determined  to  *go  on,*  or,  if  dutiful,  more 
miserable  by  remaining  off.  It  does  not  cool 
her  ardor;  it  does  not  cure  her.  If  she  has  the 
'fever'  nothing  will  cure  her — that  is,  nothing 
but  a  dose  of  the  'real  article,*  and  even  this 
may  not  prove  effective  because  work  we  en- 
joy is  not  drudgery;  work  we  cannot  enjoy  is 
drudgery.  Stage  aspirants  enjoy  their  work; 
love  their  profession;  and  one  who  loves  the 
stage  as  a  profession  can  endure  work,  and  con- 
sequently is  more  likely  to  meet  with  success  on 
it  than  in  any  other  calling. 

If  a  woman  has  ainbition,  a  good  constitu- 
tion, a  cheerful  disposition,  and  is  not  too  old 
or  too  young,  too  tall  or  too  short,  too  fat  or 
too  lean,  there  is  no  telling  what  she  may  ac- 
complish behind  the  'footlights.*  Many  of  the 
most  beautiful  women  in  the  world  are  there 
and  they  are  workers  and  enjoy  life  and  are 
not  depraved.  A  woman  can  be  on  the  stage 
and  be  good  even  if  beautiful. 

Although  chorus  singers  as  a  whole  may  be 
more  daintily  formed  and  attractive,  they  are 
not  morally  inferior  to  their  sisters  who  are 
idling  their  lives  away  doing  nothing  or  eking 
out  an  existence  in  distasteful  domestic  or  mer- 
cantile pursuits.  The  good  and  the  bad  are  to 
be  found  among  the  bad  and  the  good  in  all 
walks  of  life;  and  if  too  much  attention,  too 
many  letters,  too  many  invitations,  too  many 
bouquets,  and  too  many  admirers  will  turn  a 
young  woman's  head,  it  indicates  she  has  in- 
herited a  weak  head  from  her  ancestors.  Is 
this  her  fault?  Is  it  the  fault  of  the  stage? 
On  the  stage  discipline  is  maintained,  and  if 
she  will  attend  to  her  stage  duties  and  not 
attend  too  many  wine  suppers,  she  will  com- 
mand respect. 

The  danger,  especially  if  your  daughter  has 
inherited  any  of  your  sporty  proclivities,  will 


95 

occur  after  the  show  not  during  the  perform- 
ance. But,  if  only  good  has  been  be- 
queathed— inherited — you  can  repose  con- 
fidence in  your  child.  If  trustworthy,  trust 
her.  Nothing  causes  a  young  woman  greater 
anguish  than  to  be  regarded  with  suspicion  by 
those  whom  she  loves. 

Many  parents  show  faith  in  their  offspring 
by  not  trusting  them  out  of  sight,  and  child- 
ren usually  show  their  appreciation  of  this  style 
of  parental  solicitude  by  making  up  for  lo^t 
time  as  soon  as  they  are  out  of  sight.  Enforced 
idleness  and  too  much  chaperoning  in  time 
becomes  unendurable. 

If  you  wish  your  daughter  to  feel  that  life  is 
worth  living  you  will  peimit  her  to  be  engaged 
in  some  pursuit  which  engrosses  her  mind. 
You  will  not  stifle  her  ambition  and  deprive 
her  of  the  satisfaction  of  earning — for  services 
rendered — an  honest  dollar.  Money  earned 
in  the  Profession  is  honestly  earned.  The 
stage  to-day  is  not  what  it  was  years  ago.  An 
ill-bred  person  will  not  be  tolerated  even  in  a 
second-rate  burlesque  company.  Many  of  the 
most  cultured  young  women  (and  with  the  con- 
sent of  their  parents)  are  now  adopting  the 
stage  as  a  means  of  livelihood.  A  few  years 
ago  this  was  not  the  case.  I  do  not  mean  that 
good  and  noble  women  were  not  to  be  found 
on  the  stage  in  days  gone  by,  but  never  in  its 
history  were  so  many  of  this  kind  on  it  as  at 
the  present  time. 

Those  who  talk  the  loudest  about  the  de- 
pravities of  stage  life  have  had  no  stage  ex- 
perience. They  are  ignorant  of  the  facts. 
They  entertain  puritanical  notions  regarding  the 
theatre;  they  are  narrow-minded  and  afflicted 
with  false  pride.  Each  year,  however,  as  we 
become  more  enlightened  this  prejudice  be- 
comes less  pronounced.      The  stage,  as  w^ell  as 


96 

the  world,  is  advancing — not  deteriorating. 
Every  person  cannot  join  the  Profession.  We 
are  not  all  sufficiently  prepossessing  in  appear- 
ance; nor  have  we  all  the  talent  to  act  and  to 
sing  and  to  charm  and  dance  and  amuse  and 
interest  and  entertain  and  distract  the  minds 
of  others  from  everyday  cares  of  life.  If  a 
young  woman  believes  she  possesses  this  gift, 
does  it  signify  she  contemplates  disgracing  her- 
self or  friends?  And  if  she  attempts  to 
develop  it,  should  she  be  disinherited  and 
ostracised? 

Without  occupation  there  can  be  no  hap- 
piness; and  life  without  a  future  is  not  worth 
living.  Why  then  blight  the  happiness  and 
even  the  lives  of  those  who  wish  to  be  en- 
gaged in  a  congenial  and  honorable  occupation 
and  to  look  forward  to  a  future?" 

Anything  improper  about  this  circular? 

It  was  when  these  circulars,  in  large  quan- 
tities, were  going  out  and  business  was  coming 
in  that  Smith,  who  prided  himself  on  never 
having  in  adversity  or  in  the  joys  of  prosperity 
permitted  himself  to  become  fascinated  with 
any  woman,   lost  his  heart  and  I   lost  Smith. 

"Nothing  is  more  monotonous  than  too  great 
a  variety."  These  were  his  words  after 
his  fiancee  had  persuaded  him  to  eschew 
theatricals,  buy  a  farm,  settle  down  and  live 
the  simple  life. 


97 


CHAPTER  6. 

Almost  two  years  had  elapsed  since  the 
over-zealous  License  Commissioner,  Keating, 
had  attempted  to  block  my  progress.  During 
these  years  I  had  missed  my  old  "stand  by," 
Smith,  more  than  a  little,  yet  I  had  made 
progress. 

In  the  latter  part  of  1  905  I  let  it  be  known 
that  if  any  clients  of  mine  were  dismissed 
during  rehearsals  without  being  compensated 
for  time  lost  I  would  hold  the  "management" 
responsible. 

It  seems  that  for  years  it  had  been  a  custom 
when  rehearsing  a  company  to  hold  out  false 
inducements.  Day  after  day  stage  directors 
encouraged  more  to  rehearse  than  they  might 
ultimately  require.  No  salaries  were  paid  for 
rehearsing,  this  was  understood;  but  when  a 
young  woman  was  induced  to  rehearse  with  the 
tacit  understanding  she  was  to  have  a  contract, 
and  at  the  last  moment,  owing  to  no  fault  of 
her  own,  was  told  her  services  would  not  be 
required,  it  was  akin  to  robbery.  To  keep  her 
rehearsing,  spending  carfare  and  lunch  money, 
and  at  times  even  pawning  jewelry  to  provide 
the  necessities  of  life  as  she  struggled  on  with- 
out pay  under  the  mistaken  impression  she 
was  to  be  engaged,  did  not  seem  like  a  squa- 
deal. 

The  managers  claimed  they  received  no 
benefit  in  rehearsing  these  extra  girls;  there- 
fore, if  dismissed,  they  should  expect  no  com- 
pensation. But  I  maintained  this  was  not  a 
valid  reason.      If  it  did  the  managers  no  good 


98 

why  invariably  rehearse  a  larger  chorus  than 
they  contemplated  employing?  Was  it  not  to 
insure  against  possible  ftnancial  loss  by  having 
trained  substitutes  ready  to  fill  vacancies  which 
were  liable  to  occur  during  the  formation  of  a 
company? 

If  a  manager  insures  his  theatre  against  fire 
and  it  proves  an  unnecessary  precaution  does 
he  derive  benefit  from  his  insurance  policy? 
Can  he,  under  such  circumstances,  compel  the 
insurance  company  to  remit  the  premium? 
What  right  has  he  then,  if  he  insures  his 
production  against  disaster  and  it  proves  an 
unnecessary  precaution,  to  compel  the  young 
women  to  remit  the  premium?  Why  should 
they  foot  his  bills?  It  was  the  custom,  but  I 
decided  to  change  it;  not  from  philanthropic 
motives,  but  from  selfish  motives.  We  can 
best  help  ourselves  by  helping  others,  and  I 
proposed  to  help  my  clients  by  rectifying  the 
imposition  which  had  heretofore  been  practiced 
upon  them.  With  this  end  in  view  I  retained 
counsel  and  forthwith  proceeded,  according  to 
section  3221,  page  924,  of  the  Code  of  Civil 
Procedure  of  the  State  of  New  York,  to  bring 
the  managers  "up  with  a  round  turn." 

I  issued  a  circular  authorizing  clients  of  mine 
dismissed  in  this  unjust  manner  to  report  to 
my  lawyer  who  would  prosecute  their  claims 
find  pay  over  to  them  the  full  amount  recovered 
without  deducting  therefrom  one  dollar  for 
legal  fees  or  disbursements.  Although  this  in- 
creased my  business  it  brought  down  on  my 
head  the  wrath  of  the  managers  who  har' 
formerly  been  friendly.  Yet  I  was  transacting 
more  business  than  ever.  The  members  of  the 
Profession  came  in  droves  to  commend  me  for 
the  stand  I  had  taken.  It  is  pleasant  to  be 
"lauded  to  the  skies;"  we  like  to  listen  to  it; 
and  to  have  time  to  listen  I  set  apart  one  after- 


99 

noon  each  week  and  gave  a  "five  o'clock  tea." 
At  each  affair  a  different  hostess  presided,  it 
was  a  "crush,"  yet  they  all  seemed  to  enjoy 
themselves. 

If  we  cannot  get  enjoyment  out  of  our  busi- 
ness, if  we  are  waiting  for  a  time  to  come  when 
we  can  afford  to  retire  and  take  things  easy 
before  enjoying  life  we  may  die  without  know- 
ing what  it  is  to  live. 

The  difference  between  living  and  existing  is 
vivacity;  and  when  I  think  of  those  days,  the 
life,  the  sparkling  wit,  the  fun,  the  pleasant 
greetings,  now  only  a  memory,  gone,  never  to 
return,  I  wonder  if  I  am  getting  out  of  life  at 
the  present  time  all  that  there  is  in  life. 

At  that  time  I  was  conceded  to  be  the  most 
extensively  advertised  agent  in  the  United 
States.  I  had  practically  cornered  the  chorus 
girl  market;  every  one  said  I  had  them  all,  and 
there  was  truth  in  it.  Even  the  theatrical  paper* 
admitted  I  was  master  of  the  situation.  When 
it  came  to  filling  a  large  order  every  theatrical 
agent  was  at  my  mercy.  By  raising  a  finger 
I  could  turn  the  tide  in  his  direction  or  in  the 
direction  of  some  other  agent  or  could  ignore 
them  all  and  send  my  clients  direct  to  a 
manager.  He  could  not  give  a  show  w^ithout 
young  women,  and  if  he  did  not  take  them 
from  me  he  could  go  without  them.  The  fac* 
that  I  would  not  permit  a  client  to  be  dis- 
charged during  the  rehearsing  season  without 
compensation  might  make  him  "fume,"  and 
he  might  for  a  bluff  "turn  down"  applicants 
coming  from  my  office;  but  in  the  end  he  would 
swallow  his  pride  and  take  them.  Not  becausf^ 
he  wanted  to,  but  because  if  he  did  not  take 
them  from  me  directly  he  would  have  to  take 
them  from  me  indirectly,  through  other  agents, 
as  I  practically  controlled,  as  stated,  almost  the 
entire  chorus  girl  output. 


100 

The  epithets  used  by  some  of  these  managers 
and  agents  at  this  time  in  connection  with  my 
name  did  much  to  make  it  known,  and  for 
quite  a  period  I  was  the  most  talked  about 
person  on  the  "Rial to."  I  was  blamed  and  I 
was  praised.  If  I  happened  to  drop  in  at  one 
of  the  all-night  restaurants  along  the  "Great 
White  Way,"  for  every  manager  or  agent,  who 
defamed  me  when  I  was  not  looking,  a  hun- 
dred "show  girls"  upheld  me  and  drank  to  my 
health  when  I  was  looking. 

But  it  was  not  only  in  New  York;  the  news 
had  "spread  like  wildfire;"  and  in  Boston, 
Philadelphia,  Chicago,  and  San  Francisco  my 
circulars  offering  to  protect  my  clients,  free  of 
cost  to  them,  were  read  with  avidity;  read  in 
secret  when  in  their  dressing-rooms  with  doors 
locked. 

The  mere  fact  that  this  particular  circular 
was  kept  away  from  the  eyes  of  the  managers 
by  my  clients  was  enough  to  make  every  young 
woman  in  the  company  want  to  see  it  and 
want  to  know  all  about  it.  Men  dislike  details 
but  women  want  full  particulars.  What  is  two 
dollars  to  a  "front  row  show  girl"  compared 
with  rehearsing  two  months  with  the  risk  of 
then  being  dismissed  without  cause  and  without 
pay?  It  was  not  to  be  considered;  and  when 
the  next  rehearsing  season  came  around  the 
two  dollar  bills  flowed  into  my  office  twice  as 
fast  as  they  ever  had  before;  and  those  who 
paid  them  were  protected,  absolutely.  We 
did  not  lose  a  case  for  the  obvious  reason  the 
managers  knew  they  did  not  have  a  "leg  on 
which  to  stand"  and  so  settled  all  claims  insti- 
tuted, out  of  court.  Some  would  reconsider 
the  matter  when  they  realized  what  might 
happen  to  them  and  would  reinstate  the  chorus 
singers  who  had  been  cast  adrift  at  the  last 
moment. 


101 

Thus  it  can  be  seen  I  was  successful  in  recti- 
fying this  unjust  custom  which  had  existed  for 
years  and  which,  now  that  I  am  no  longer  in 
the  business,  again  exists. 

I  have  explained  in  detail  why  I  was  not 
popular  with  certain  agents  and  managers  in 
order  that  the  reader  may  understand  the  mo- 
tive these  men  (not  all  but  several)  had  in  com- 
bining and  in  using  influence,  political  and 
otherwise,  to  have  me  driven  from  the  field. 

Money,  the  love  of  which  is  the  root  of 
much  evil,  was  the  moving  power.  I  was  a 
"thorn  in  the  side'  to  the  agents  and  an  ex- 
pense to  the  managers,  and  when  you  touch 
a  man's  pocket  you  touch  him  in  a  tender  spot. 


102 


CHAPTER  7. 

Nothing  irritates  like  success.  My  success 
made  many  theatrical  agents  furious.  Not  all, 
however,  were  envious.  Some  over  their 
signatures  assured  me  that  they  took  no  part 
in  the  disgraceful  proceedings. 

The  Treasurer  of  the  Theatrical  Agent's 
Society,  Webster  Cullison,  was  unquestionably 
irritated. 

Mr.  Cullison  had  on  June  2 1  st,  1  905,  written 
me  that  he  was  in  urgent  need  of  young  women 
for  chorus  work.  He  had  received  orders  and 
was  unable  to  fill  them.  I  declined  to  aid  him 
because  I  was  at  the  time  deluged  with  orders 
of  my  own  received  direct  from  managers. 
After  reading  my  letter  to  this  effect  Cullison 
sent  Philip  Watkins,  manager  of  his  operatic 
department,  to  my  office  to  persuade  me  to 
execute  a  part  if  not  all  of  his  order;  but  it 
was  against  my  rules  to  subject  clients  to  ad- 
ditional expense;  if  I  could  place  them  with 
managers  I  did  not  propose  to  allow  another 
agent  to  make  another  fee  out  of  theni.  But 
if  I  could  not  "book"  them  and  if  some  other 
agent  could  then  it  became  optional  with  my 
clients  as  to  whether  or  not  they  cared  to  pay 
the  additional  fee. 

Watkins  explained  the  situation  to  Cullison 
and  later  informed  me  that  Cullison  was  in- 
censed for  the  stand  I  had  taken.  Evidently 
it  rankled  in  his  breast  a  long  time,  over  eight 
months,  as  on  March  20,  1906,  he  invited  his 
brother  agents  w^hose  orders  I  had  rejected  for 
the  same  reason  to  meet  him  in  his  office  Sun- 


103 

day  evening,  March  25,  1906,  to  discuss  (as 
he  put  it)    "that  man  Flagg." 

In  his  letter  asking  me  to  help  him  fill  orders 
it  was  "My  dear  Mr.  Flagg;  '  but  now  (as  he 
no  longer  could  see  any  prospect  of  making 
money  out  of  my  clients)  it  was  "that  man 
Flagg." 

About  fifteen  agents  attended  this  Sunday 
night  conference  and  from  all  accounts  they 
had  a  lively  session.  The  stenographer  whose 
d»aty  it  was  to  record  the  minutes  had  her  hands 
full. 

We  wanted  those  minutes.  By  "we"  I  mean 
Assistant  District  Attorney  William  Marshall 
and  myself.  They  might  afford  us  a  founda- 
tion upon  which  to  base  an  action  of  criminal 
conspiracy.  Mr.  Marshall  tried  three  different 
times  in  my  behalf  to  get  them.  Mr.  Jerome 
also  served  papers  on  Cullison  demanding  that 
they  be  produced  in  his,  the  District  Attorney's, 
office,  but  they  did  not  materialize.  Some  one, 
who  knows  but  won't  tell,  spirited  them  away. 
When  people  simply  won't  talk  it  is  difficult 
at  the  time  to  prove  conspiracy.  But  if  a  per- 
son has  patience  and  will  "bide  his  time," 
sooner  or  later  the  truth  "will  out."  As 
stated,  I  have  been  biding  my  time;  and  now 
years  after  that  rainy  Sunday  night,  the  night 
the  conspirators  met  in  secret  behind  locked 
doors  in  the  office  of  Webster  Cullison,  No. 
1 402  Broadway,  the  truth  is  unfolding  itself 
before  me. 

Cullison  himself  admits  this  secret  session 
took  place  on  the  evening  of  March  25,  1906 
and  that  they  convened  for  the  purpose  of  dis- 
cussing me.  Just  how  they  discussed  me  I  can 
not  state  literally,  but  judging  from  subsequent 
acts  it  is  fair  to  assume  that  the  spokesman 
spoke  as  follows: 

Flagg  is  acting  the  part  of  a   "dog  in  the 


104 

manger."  He  is  cutting  commissions.  He  re- 
fuses to  recognize  our  Union  and  wants  the 
earth.  Our  very  existence  is  threatened.  If 
Flagg  keeps  expanding  we  may  as  well  close 
up  shop.  As  he  conducts  his  business  lawfully 
we  have  no  way  of  revoking  his  license,  but  as 
it  is  about  to  expire  by  limitation  the  law  gives 
us  the  privilege  to  object  to  his  procuring  a 
new  one.  It  is  now  the  25  th  of  March.  Next 
month  he  will  put  in  his  application  for  a  new 
license  and  we  shall  then  have  the  legal  right 
to  pass  over  that  period  of  his  life  in  which  he 
has  been  engaged  in  the  theatrical  business  and 
rake  up  his  past.  We  can  go  away  back  to 
the  time  of  the  "Flagg  Flats"  and  show  from 
his  record  when  engaged  in  the  flat  business 
that  he  is  not  entitled  to  a  license.  This  will 
be  easy  now  that  we  have  the  License  Com- 
missioner and  two  benevolent  women's 
leagues  with  us. 

If  it  were  our  Society  only  that  objected  it 
might  occasion  comment.  People  might  think 
we  were  interested  witnesses,  competitors;  but 
w^ith  the  Woman's  Municipal  League  and  the 
Woman's  Rescue  League  as  joint  complainants 
it  will  be  different.  No  person  will  say  these 
leagues  are  pecuniarily  interested. 

Bogart,  the  new  License  Commissioner,  is 
anxious  to  have  everything  look  straight  and 
you  cannot  blame  him.  He  has  only  recently 
been  appointed  and  Flagg  might  show  fight — 
might  attempt  to  make  trouble;  in  such  an 
event  Bogart  would  rely  not  so  much  on  us 
as  on  the  benevolent  leagues.  Our  Society  can 
hardly  be  called  religious  and  the  Commissioner 
knows  and  we  know  that  the  Mayor  would  not 
be  likely  to  extend  to  us  much  consideration. 
But  the  Mayor  or  any  other  man  would  not 
dare  to  intimate  that  Charlotte  Smith,  the 
venerable    head    of    the    National    and    Inter- 


-  105 

national  Woman's  Rescue  League  was  actuated 
by  other  than  philanthropic  motives.  So  with 
the  Woman's  Municipal  League.  Look  at  its 
board  of  directors.  Those  names  carry  weight. 
With  the  co-operation  of  these  two  leagues  I 
do  not  hesitate  to  say  our  victory  is  as  good  as 
won,  etc.,  etc. 

If  the  reader  cannot  understand  why  the 
flat  business  should  be  connected  with  the 
theatrical  business  let  him  consider  the  follow- 
ing illustration:  Suppose  a  physician  had  built 
up  a  practice  by  charging  a  small  fee;  suppose 
certain  other  doctors  had  said  to  him,  "Here! 
this  thing  must  stop!  if  you  do  not  charge  your 
patients  as  much  as  we  charge  ours  w^e  will 
bring  influence  to  bear  and  have  your  license 
taken  from  you.  Then  if  you  persist  in  practi- 
cing without  a  doctor's  certificate  we  will  have 
the  authorities  jail  you."  Suppose  they  had 
talked  like  this,  and  suppose  he  had  said  to 
them:  "You  can't  do  it,"  and  they  had  re- 
plied, "Oh,  yes  we  can  and  we  will  tell  you 
why."  Years  ago,  long  before  you  thought  of 
becoming  an  M.  D.  you  owned  many  flat 
buildings  and  some  of  your  tenants  on  a  hot 
night  in  the  dead  of  Summer  went  on  the  roof 
and  sang,  'She  is  the  Sunshine  of  Paradise 
Alley.'  This  disturbed  the  "peace  of  the 
neighborhood."  Think  what  that  means.  We 
do  not  say  you  were  present;  we  are  aware  you 
were  not;  we  know  you  did  not  live  on  the 
premises  and  that  you  were  in  Long  Branch, 
N.  J.  registered  at  the  Ocean  Hotel  at  the 
time;  but  that  does  not  exonerate  you  in  the 
eyes  of  the  law;  they  were  your  buildings  and 
your  tenants  and  when  on  the  stand  you  had 
to  admit  it.  Therefore  you  are  not  a  fit  person 
to  practice  medicine,  and  w^e  are  sure  the 
authorities  when  appealed  to  will  so  decide. 

Now  the  readers  if  versed  in  legal  lore  may 
understand  the  connection. 


106 


This  was  my  case  exactly;  only  instead  of 
being  a  licensed  physician  I  was  a  licensed 
agent,  and  the  other  agents  were  sure  that  I 
was  not  a  fit  person  to  conduct  a  theatrical 
agency  because  ten  years  previously  a  few  of 
my  tenants  had  disturbed  the  peace  of  the 
neighborhood;  wherefore  they  appealed  to  the 
authorities. 

On  the  first  day  of  each  May  a  theatrical 
agent's  license  expires.  Then  if  the  agent 
wishes  to  continue  in  business  he  must  make 
application  for  a  new  one;  and  under  the  law, 
as  recently  amended,  it  is  left  to  the  discretion 
of  the  Commissioner  as  to  whether  or  not  he 
will  grant  a  license.  Actuated  by  prejudice, 
spite,  animosity,  political  influence,  a  desire  to 
accommodate  friends  or  to  obey  the  commands 
of  a  district  leader,  or  for  any  other  unlawful 
cause  he  may  say,  "In  my  discretion  I  decline 
to  issue  a  license."  And  the  applicant  how- 
ever w^orthy  has  no  redress  other  than  an  ap- 
peal to  the  Appellate  Division  of  the  Supreme 
Court  which  entails  expense  and  a  delay  of 
about  eighteen  months. 

No  reason  could  be  shown  why  my  old 
license  should  be  revoked,  and  as  a  matter  of 
fact  and  record  it  was  not  revoked,  statements 
made  by  the  newspapers  to  the  contrary  not- 
withstanding. My  enemies  were  obliged  to 
wait  until  it  expired  by  limitation  before  ob- 
jecting to  its  renewal.  But  when  the  time  ar- 
rived to  apply  for  a  new  license  my  enemies 
put  the  so-called  benevolent  women's  leagues 
to  the  front. 

The  fact  there  had  been  nothing  in  the  legal 
or  moral  conduct  of  my  agency  business  that 
any  person  could  object  to  was  not  to  be  taken 
into  consideration.  The  "Honorable"  John 
N.   Bogart,    License  Commissioner,   in   the   ex- 


107 

ercise  of  his  discretion^  ruled  that  that  had 
nothing  to  do  with  the  matter.  Did  my  tenants 
ten  years  ago  disturb  the  peace  of  the  neigh- 
borhood? That  was  the  question,  and  to 
settle  it  he  allowed  the  allies  of  the  theatrical 
agents,  the  so-called  women's  benevolent 
leagues,  to  refer  back  to  my  1896,  "flat"  trial, 
and  assign  it  as  sufficient  cause  why  I  should 
not  in  1  906,  ten  years  later,  be  legally  permit- 
ted to  honorably  compete  against  the  agents. 

The  Agent's  Society  made  no  complaint 
against  me,  nevertheless  certain  members  were 
instrumental  in  securing  the  services  of  Char- 
lotte Smith  of  the  alleged  Women's  Rescue 
League  and  Helen  Arthur  of  the  Municipal 
Leagfue  to  aid  the  Commissioner  in  "pulling  the 
chestnuts  out  of  the  fire,"  so  to  speak. 

In  New  York  City  there  are  many  societies 
also  individuals  trying  to  make  a  living  without 
working;  parasites  who  eke  out  an  existence 
by  humbugging  the  people;  and  the  meanest 
of  all  are  those  who  obtain  money  by  begging 
in  the  name  of  charity,  who  pretend  to  be  in- 
terested in  the  unfortunate,  but  who  in  reality 
are  only  interested  in  themselves. 

These  imposters  filch  money  from  kind- 
hearted  persons  by  representing  that  it  will  be 
used  in  helping  the  helpless,  whereas  the  major 
portion  is  used  in  helping  themselves.  To  facil- 
itate collections  these  beggars  unite  and  form 
what  they  call  a  "League"  or  "Society." 

According  to  the  New  York  American, 
February  1st,  1915,  the  Charity  Organization 
Society  in  its  last  annual  report  admits  that  it 
cost  $148,308.54  to  give  $90,510.25  to  the 
poor.  In  round  figures  out  of  two  hundred 
and  thirty  thousand,  one  hundred  and  forty 
thousand  dollars  were  "knocked  down." 

In  forming  a  "benevolent  society"  the  first 
requisite  after  the  promoters  have  endowed  it 


108 

with  an  impressive  name  but  no  cash  is  to  rope 
in  a  few  estimable  women  and  make  a  dummy 
board  of  directors  of  them.  This  gives  prestige 
to  the  organization  and  makes  it  easier  for  the 
beggars  to  obtain  money  under  false  pretenses. 
Reputation  is  more  to  these  people  than  justice. 
They  are  more  anxious  to  seem,  than  to  be, 
saintly.  They  have  no  respect  for  truth,  care 
nothing  for  facts  but  are  slaves  to  custom. 
They  subsist  on  public  approval  and  the  so- 
called  officers  who  pay  to  themselves  salaries 
would  bill  the  town  like  a  circus  and  bleizon 
their  names  far  and  wide  if  it  did  not  cost 
money  to  advertise.  It  is  against  their  princi- 
ples to  pay  for  anything,  but  if  they  can  jump 
on  any  one  and  thereby  gain  free  advertising 
they  will,  with  or  without  evidence,  pick  up 
their  skirts  and  jump. 

The  License  Commissioner  and  a  few  theat- 
rical agents  realizing  this  and  the  importance 
of  having  arrayed  against  me  powerful  and 
seemingly  reputable  witnesses  invoked  the  co- 
operation of  the  aforementioned  so-called 
benevolent  leagues.  Therefore  the  question 
arises  were  my  competitors  who  had  connived 
with  these  "Leagues"  and  the  License  Com- 
missioner guilty  of  criminal  conspiracy. 

When  two  or  more  persons  combine  to  in- 
jure another's  reputation  or  business  that  in 
law  constitutes  criminal  conspiracy. 

It  has  been  ruled  by  a  Federal  Court  that  "a 
conspiracy  is  a  confederation  to  effect  by  un- 
lawful means  a  legal  end  or  by  legal  means 
an  illegal  end.  It  is  not  necessary  that  two  or 
more  men  meet  and  formally  enter  into  an 
agreement  or  unlawful  scheme.  It  is  enough 
if  two  or  more  men  in  any  manner  come  to  a 
mutual  understanding  to  accomplish  an  un- 
lawful design.      All  parties  become  partners  to 


109 

a  conspiracy  even  if  the  part  is  a  subordinate 
one. 

Our  statutes  insist  that  at  least  one  shall 
actually  perform  some  act  to  effect  the  object 
of  the  conspiracy.  The  act  must  be  an  overt 
one  but  not  in  itself  a  crime. 

The  criminal  intent  to  commit  the  overt  act 
need  not  be  shown.  If  the  acts  speak  for 
themselves  you  are  at  liberty  to  infer  the 
intent." 

It  is  for  the  reader  to  determine  if  the  acts 
of  those  who  did  or  did  not  appear  against  me 
speak  for  themselves.  If  they  do  then  accord- 
ing to  the  Court's  ruling  he  is  "at  liberty  to  in- 
fer the  intent." 

I  shall  refer  to  the  acts  of  each  in  chrono- 
logical order. 

Charlotte  Smith.  Who  is  Charlotte  Smith? 
She  styles  herself  President  of  the  "National 
and  International  Woman's  Rescue  League." 
No  address. 

I  quote  from  the  minutes  of  my  third  hearing 
before  the  License  Commissioner: 

My  lawyer:  "Mrs.  Smith,  where  is  your 
league  located — your  office?" 

"We  have  no  office  just  now." 

"Did  this  league  of  yours  ever  have  an 
office?" 

(Witness  refuses  to  answer). 

"Is  it  not  a  fact  that  your  Rescue  League  is 
a  myth?" 

(Witness  refuses  to  answer). 

By  Lawyer  Goodhart  (attorney  for  the  al- 
leged Woman's  Rescue  League)  :  "I  object  to 
all  further  questions  about  the  league.  We  will 
allow  it  to  be  understood  that  this  witness  does 
not  appear  here  as  representing  any  league 
but  simply  as  a  private  citizen." 

My  lawyer:  "This  woman  has  been  repre- 
senting to  the  public  that  she  is  the  President 


no 

of  the  Woman's  Rescue  League.  I  can  prove 
by  affidavits  and  by  the  Parkhurst  Society  that 
no  such  league  exists  and  that  this  woman  i» 
an  imposter.  I  also  claim  the  right  to  put 
these  questions  in  order  to  attack  the  credi- 
bility of  the  witness  and  this  I  have  a  legal 
right  to  do." 

By  the  License  Commissioner:  "You  may 
have  that  right  in  a  court  of  law  but  we  do 
things  differently  here.  I  will  not  allow  any 
questions  regarding  this  league  because  accord- 
ing to  the  statement  of  the  attorney  who  repre- 
sents this  witness  no  such  league  appears  here 
or  is  represented  before  me." 

So  much  for  Charlotte  Smith. 

Now  Helen  Arthur.  Who  is  Helen  Arthur? 
She  is  the  legal  adviser  of  the  Woman's  Muni- 
cipal League,  1 9  West  Twenty-sixth  Street, 
New  York  City.  But  with  all  the  facilities  of 
the  "Research  Department"  of  this  league  at 
her  command  she  failed  to  coerce  any  person 
(and  she  tried  for  weeks)  to  say  aught  against 
me.  Furthermore,  although  she  was  looking 
for  trouble  she  failed  to  discover  anything  out 
of  the  way  in  the  conduct  of  my  business,  my 
customers,  my  young  women  clients  or  my 
own  conduct;  and  subsequently  so  stated  in 
writing  and  I  hold  the  original  letter  which  was 
given  to  me  after  this  league  had,  according  to 
Miss  Arthur  herself,  employed  both  men  and 
women  accomplices  to  call  at  my  office  and 
try  by  lying  and  spying  to  entrap  me.  De- 
spite all  this  Miss  Arthur,  to  accommodate  the 
License  Commissioner,  although  she  had  no 
complaint  to  enter,  appeared  at  my  hearing, 
March  28th,  1906,  thereby  conferring  upon 
the  Commissioner  the  benefit  of  the  prestige  of 
the  league  she  represented. 

Bogart  evidently  believed  it  would  "clear 
his  skirts"  of  being  in  collusion  with  others  to 


in 

say  ihe  Woman's  Municipal  League  had  ap- 
peared against  me,  and  so  anxious  was  he  to 
be  able  to  say  this  that  he  asked  lawyer  Arthur 
(so  she  says)  to  be  present  with  or  without  a 
complaint,  and  to  accommodate  him  she  w^as  on 
hand  and  did  the  best  she  could.  She  "button- 
holed" the  reporters  and  intimated  that  "Some 
day — some  day — the  Woman's  Municipal 
League  now  that  I  am  at  the  head  of  its  'Re- 
search Department*  may  have  a  complaint  to 
lodge  against  Flagg."  "Some  day — some 
day" — Lawyer  Helen  Arthur  may  become  a 
Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court. 

Later  realizing  the  gravity  of  the  crime  she 
had  committed  and  having  heard  that  the 
District  Attorney  had  made  demand  on  Culli- 
son  to  produce  the  minutes  of  the  secret  Sun- 
day night  meeting  and  fearing  a  prosecution 
for  criminal  conspiracy  this  weak-minded  law- 
yer in  petticoats  retracted  in  writing  all  she  had 
said  against  me.      So  much  for  Helen  Arthur. 

Now  Goodhart.  Who's  Law^rence  G.  Good- 
hart?  He  says  he  is  Austin  Davis'  lawyer  and 
there  is  no  question  about  it.  Some  time  prior 
to  the  March  25th,  1906,  Sunday  night-  meet- 
ing Davis  instituted  a  damage  suit  against  the 
Morning  Telegraph  Publishing  Company, 
Eighth  Avenue  and  Fiftieth  Street,  New  York 
City,  and  as  Goodhart's  name  appears  on  the 
complaint  as  attorney  of  record  it  is  proof 
positive  Goodhart  is  his  lawyer.  Please  do 
not  lose  sight  of  this  fact  nor  of  the  fact  that 
Davis  is  a  member  of  the  Theatrical  Agents' 
Society. 

Away  back,  years  before  they  wanted  to  put 
me  out  of  business,  Charlotte  Smith  introduced 
herself  to  Goodhart's  client,  Austin  Davis;  and 
ae  time  rolled  by  he  became  well  acquainted 
with  her.  By  her  hypocritical  representations 
he  was  at  first  led  to  believe  she  was  a  pious 
woman. 


112 

Early  in  September,  1905,  she  dropped  into 
Davis'  ofFice  to  have  a  ''heart  to  heart"  talk 
with  him.  She  wanted  him  to  supply  her  with 
"talent"  free  in  order  that  she  might  give  her- 
self a  benefit;  but  she  did  not  say  so  to  Davis. 
She  told  him  the  proceeds  of  the  proposed 
benefit  were  to  go  to  Bertha  Claiche,  the  "white 
slave  girl,"  at  that  time  incarcerated  in  the 
tombs  charged  with  murder. 

Davis,  impressed  by  Mrs.  Smith's  seeming 
good  intentions  agreed  to  help  her,  supposing, 
as  did  the  performers,  that  the  money  was  to 
go  to  the  poor  "white  slave  girl."  But  Davis 
knows  better  now. 

The  entertainment  was  given  in  Association 
Hall,  1  60  West  Twenty-ninth  Street,  New  York 
City,  September  28th,  1905;  but  Charlotte 
Smith  got  away  with  the  entire  box-office  re- 
ceipts; and  Bertha,  for  whose  benefit  the  enter- 
tainment was  supposed  to  have  been  given, 
did  not  receive  a  penny  and  wrote  Davis  a 
letter  from  the  Tombs  to  this  effect. 

Davis  when  told  that  Charlotte  had  skipped 
with  the  box-office  receipts  got  hot  but  subse- 
quently cooled  off. 

In  December,  1  905,  after  the  Bertha  Claiche 
affair  had  "blown  over  "  the  alleged  president, 
Charlotte  Smith,  again  "turned  up"  at  the  office 
of  Austin  Davis.  This  time  she  was  more 
modest  in  her  demands.  She  did  not  mention 
"benefit,"  she  substituted  a  different  word — 
"accommodate."  If  Davis  would  accommo- 
date her  by  writing  two  letters  on  his  theatrical 
letterhead  paper,  one  asking  her  to  rescue 
certain  young  women  who  had  been  enticed 
into  an  immoral  resort  and  the  other,  date'd 
two  weeks  later,  thanking  her  for  having  done 
so;  in  other  words,  thanking  her  for  having 
rescued   young  women  who   did   not  exist,    it 


113 

would  place  her  under  obligations  to  him. 
She  wanted  these  letters  for  begging  purposes. 
She  needed  money  and  the  letters  were  im- 
portant; she  could  use  them  as  evidence  to 
prove  she  was  consecrating  her  life  to  a  noble 
cause,  the  rescuing  of  the  fallen,  whereas  the 
only  person  whom  she  was  ever  known  to  have 
"rescued"  was  herself  and  she  accomplished 
this  by  begging  from  and  imposing  upon  the 
charitably  inclined. 

When  "the  wife"  discovered  that  Mr.  Davis 
had  signed  and  given  this  woman  these  two 
letters  she  became  excited;  women  do  some- 
times become  excited  and  Mrs.  Davis  told  me 
herself  she  had  no  use  for  women  of  the  Char- 
lotte Smith  type.  But  Mr.  Davis  explained  to 
his  wife,  and  I  was  present,  that  Mrs.  Smith  was 
a  dangerous  woman;  she  might  have  made 
trouble  had  he  refused.  He  gave  her  the 
letters  because  he  considered  it  wise  not  to  in- 
cur her  enmity.  He  admitted  that  he  would 
like  to  have  them  back  and  had  already  con- 
sulted his  lawyer,  Goodhart,  about  the  matter. 

It  is  important  to  keep  in  mind  that  all  this 
— my  conversation  with  Davis  and  his  inter- 
view with  his  legal  adviser,  Goodhart,  relative 
to  the  two  begging  letters — took  place  in  1  905. 

It  was  in  this  year  that  Davis  signed  the 
spurious  begging  letters  to  accommodate  Char- 
lotte Smith;  and  it  was  the  next  year,  1906, 
that  Charlotte  Smith  signed  the  spurious  com- 
plaining letter  to  accommodate  Davis. 

The  day  after  the  Sunday  night  meeting, 
held  March  25th,  1906,  in  Cullisons  office  for 
the  purpose  of  discussing  me,  Charlotte  Smith 
called  on  Davis'  lawyer,  this  self-same  L.  G. 
Goodhart,  2  1  Park  Row,  with  a  letter  of  intro- 
duction dated  one  day  later,  March  26th. 
This  was  not  disputed. 

Now  who    sent    her    to    Goodhart's    office? 


114 

Did  someone  at  that  secret  meeting  held  the 
evening  before  she  called  on  Davis'  lawyer 
make  a  motion  that  she  be  secured  to  aid  them 
in  depriving  me  of  my  license;  and  did  it  go 
down  on  the  minutes  of  the  meeting  that  tRis 
pretender  was  to  co-operate  with  them  in  the 
conspiracy  to  put  me  out  of  business? 

Now,  do  you  understand  why  District  At- 
torney Jerome  could  not  lay  hands  on  those 
minutes?  Can  you  imagine  why  they  were 
spirited  away?  Why  every  "mother's  son"  of 
them  in  that  room  that  night  would  rather  have 
been  fined  and  sent  to  jail  for  contempt  than 
to  have  been  "brought  up"  on  the  more  serious 
charge  of  conspiracy  with  ten  or  more  years 
staring  him  in  the  face?  Can  you  blame  them 
under  such  circumstances  for  doing  away  with 
such  incriminating  evidence,  the  minutes  of 
such  a  meeting? 

Davis  was  a  member  of  the  Union.  Good- 
hart  was  his  lawyer.  The  day  after  the  Union 
held  its  meeting  Mrs.  Smith  was  closeted  with 
Goodhart  and  the  outcome  was  the  following 
letter:  I  quote  from  the  minutes  of  my  first 
hearing. 

By  Commissioner  Bogart:  "Under  date  of 
April  3,  1906,  I  received  the  following  letter: 

"Dear  Sir — My  client,  the  Woman's 
Rescue  League,  instructs  me  on  its  behalf  to 
protest  against  the  granting  of  a  renewal 
license  to  one  Jared  Flagg.  And  to  support 
its  protest  respectfully  calls  your  attention 
to  the  following  facts:  Mr.  Flagg  has  been 
advertising  for  girls  to  act  as  artists'  models; 
and  in  this  connection  and  as  bearing  upon 
Mr.  Flagg's  fitness  to  conduct  such  an  agency 
and  for  such  a  purpose  the  enclosed  memo- 
randa and  letter  taken  from  the  files  of  the 
Woman's  Rescue  League  will  prove  interest- 
ing. If  you  desire  any  other  information 
upon  this  point  the  officers  of  the  League 
stand    ready    to    appear    before    you    at    any 


115 

hearing  you  may  fix.  My  client  further  in- 
structs me  to  call  your  attention  to  the  fact 
reported  in  the  newspapers  that  Flagg  served 
under  his  own  name  at  Auburn  State's 
Prison  a  sentence  of  two  years  for  the  crime 
of  decoying  girls  to  houses  of  ill-repute.  Of 
course  I  make  these  statements  as  attorney 
for  the  League  and  my  client  stands  ready 
to  back  them  up  by  ample  and  sufficient 
evidence. 

As  I  have  stated,  the  enclosed  copy  of  a 
letter  and  explanatory  note  is  taken  from 
the  files  of  the  League.  The  latter  was  sent 
to  Mr.  Flagg  and  there  is  every  reason  to 
believe  it  was  received  as  my  client's  name 
and  address  was  on  the  envelope  and  it  has 
never  been  returned  by  the  post  office. 
Very  truly  yours, 

LAWRENCE  G.  GOODHART. 
Attorney  for  the  Woman's  Rescue  League." 

If  Goodhart  questioned  his  client,  Charlotte 
Smith,  he  knew  she  could  not  produce  one 
witness  or  a  scrap  of  evidence  to  substantiate 
any  one  of  the  charges  he  made  on  behalf  of 
the  bogus  "League."  And  yet,  cognizant  of 
this  he  deliberately  made  them  again  at  my 
hearing  before  the  License  Commissioner.  He 
made  them  knowing  that  every  newspaper  in 
the  city  would  publish  them  cis  true;  and  this 
is  just  what  they  did  do. 

I  quote  from  the  minutes  of  my  third  hear- 
ing:— Mr.  Flagg's  lawyer:  "Mrs.  Smith,  you 
charge  Mr.  Flagg  with  having  advertised  in  the 
daily  papers  for  girls  to  act  as  artists*  models? 

Mrs.  Smith:      "Yes." 

"Can  you  mention  the  name  of  any  paper 
containing  any  such  advertisement?" 

Mrs.  Smith:      "No." 

"As  bearing  on  this  subject  it  is  stated  that 
a  letter  taken  from  the  files  of  your  'League' 
will  prove  interesting  to  the  Commissioner. 
Was  any  letter  sent  to  the  Commissioner  or 
have  you  any  such  letter  in  your  possession?" 


116 

Mrs.  Smith:      "I  did  have  but  can't  find  it." 

"It  is  stated  that  the  officers  of  your  'League* 
stand  ready  to  appear  before  his  Honor  at  any 
hearing  he  may  fix.      Is  this  true?" 

Mrs.  Smith:      "I  don't  know." 

"What  is  the  'Woman's  Rescue  League'?" 

Mrs.  Smith:  "I  am  the  president  of  the 
National  and  International  Woman's  Rescue 
League." 

"Who  is  its  vice-president?" 

Objected  to  by  Lawyer  Goodhart. 

Objection  sustained  by  his  "Honor"  the 
License  Commissioner. 

By  Mr.  Flagg's  lawyer: — "Who  is  its  secre- 
tary?" 

Objected  to  by  Goodhart. 

Objection  sustained  by  his  "Honor"  the 
Commissioner. 

"Did  you  tell  Mr.  Goodhart  that  Mr.  Flagg 
had  served  two  years  in  Auburn  State's 
Prison?" 

Mrs.  Smith:  "I  told  him  I  thought  I  had 
seen  it  so  reported  in  the  newspapers." 

"Mr.  Goodhart  stated  in  his  letter  to  the 
Commissioner  that  his  client  (meaning  you) 
stood  ready  to  back  up  these  charges  with 
ample  and  sufficient  evidence.  Did  you  tell 
him  you  had  such  evidence?" 

Mrs.  Smith:      "I  did  not." 

"Did  you  tell  Mr.  Goodhart  you  could  prove 
Mr  .Flagg  had  served  a  term  in  Auburn  State's 
Prison  or  any  other  State's  prison?" 

Mrs.  Smith:      "I  did  not." 

"Did  you  tell  him  you  could  produce  evi- 
dence to  prove  that  Mr.  Flagg  had  sent  girls  to 
houses  of  ill-repute  or  that  you  could  mention 
the  names  of  any  such  girls?" 

Mrs.  Smith:  "Well,  I  told  him  I  would  try 
to  find  such  evidence." 

Mr.  Flagg's  lawyer:      "Can  you  mention  the 


117 

name  of  any  one  girl,  or  the  location  of  any- 
disreputable  house,  or  person,  to  whom  a  girl 
was  ever  sent  by  Mr.  Flagg?" 

Mrs.  Smith:  "No,  but  someone  told  me 
he  thought  he  had  heard  of  some  such  thing. 

Mr.  Flagg's  lawyer:  "Did  you  ever  meet  a 
girl,  or  do  you  know  of  any  person  who  ever 
did  meet  one,  who  claimed  to  have  been  sent 
by  Mr.  Flagg  to  such  a  resort  or  to  such  a 
person?" 

Mrs.  Smith:  "In  going  about  so  many 
people  tell  me  so  many  things  I  can't  remem- 
ber." 

Mr.  Flagg's  lawyer:  "Mrs.  Smith — and  I 
want  you  to  think  carefully  before  answering 
this  question — can  you  produce  any  evidence 
at  all  to  substantiate  any  one  of  the  charges 
your  so-called  'Woman's  Rescue  League'  has 
preferred  against  Jared  Flagg?  " 

Mrs.  Smith:  "Since  hearing  that  these 
charges  had  been  made  in  the  newspapers  I 
have  been  looking  and  expecting  to  get  such 
evidence  but  have  not  been  able  to  get  hold  of 
any." 

Mr.  Flagg's  lawyer: — "That's  all  for  the 
present." 

Now  then,  if  Goodhart  did  not  question  his 
client;  did  not  know  what  her  answers  would 
be  to  these  questions  until  he  heard  them  under 
cross-examination,  whom  do  you  suppose  he 
did  question? 

No  man,  however  depraved,  would  write  a 
letter  containing  such  charges  without  an  in- 
centive. 

When,  where  and  by  whom  the  letter  was 
originally  composed  I  do  not  say.  It  was 
dated  April  3d,  1906,  eight  days  after  the 
secret  meeting  held  in  Cullison's  office  and  it 
was  signed  "L.  G.  Goodhart,  Attorney  for  the 
Woman's  Rescue   League."      But  at  this  time 


118 

Goodhart  did  not  know  me  from  Adam.  He 
may  have  heard  of  me,  but  he  may  have  heard 
of  Adam,  so  who  put  him  up  to  it?  He  says: 
—  (and  I  am  quoting  from  the  minutes  of  my 
third  hearing)  "I  wrote  that  letter  out  of 
charity,  I  am  an  American  citizen"  (he  does 
not  look  it  but  he  says  it)  "and  I  am  proud  of 
my  native  city.  New  York.  I  regard  this  cur 
a  menace  to  the  community  and  want  to  put 
him  where  he  belongs,  behind  bars." 

Vituperation  is  not  evidence  but  as  Good- 
hart  had  no  evidence  this  was  the  best  he  could 
do.  As  a  rule  persons  do  not  pamper  their 
vanity  to  such  an  extent.  Pride  in  itself  would 
not  have  induced  him  to  ruin  a  fellow  citizen's 
business  and  reputation  even  if  he  had  evidence 
of  wrongdoing.  Much  less  then  would  his 
pride  have  induced  him  to  ruin  my  business 
and  reputation  without  a  particle  of  evidence 
of  wrongdoing  in  or  out  of  his  possession.  We 
must  therefore  look  for  some  stronger  motive. 
He  had  a  motive — an  ulterior  one — and  he 
was  afraid  to  let  it  be  known,  but  inadvertent- 
ly, after  a  burst  of  verbosity  which  betrayed 
a  knowledge  of  the  phraseology  of  the  slums 
and  just  as  he  was  about  to  take  his  seat,  he 
remarked  (and  I  am  quoting  from  the  min- 
utes) :  "Austin  Davis  and  other  clients  of  mine 
have  been  looking  up  Flagg's  record  and  I 
have  been  helping  them." 

Goodhart  should  have  kept  that  information 
to  himself. 

Before  a  lawyer  will  help  a  client  is  it  not 
customary  for  him  to  receive  a  retainer?  Now 
we  are  getting  at  the  motive.  Goodhart  was 
helping  them.  Charlotte  Smith  he  says  paid 
him  no  fee.  This  seems  reasonable.  The 
poor  old  lady  had  not  given  herself  a  benefit 
performance  for  almost  a  year.  But  Davis — 
"Davis,"  Goodhart  says,  "and  other  clients" — 


119 

"other,"  of  course  there  were  others.  Davis 
was  not  the  only  one;  and  a  little  assessment 
all  around  might  have  a  tendency  to  make 
Goodhart  "get  busy."  But  why,  if  they  had 
been  looking  up  my  record  did  he  not  invite 
them  down  and  give  them  all  a  chance  to  tell 
what  immoral,  improper,  fraudulent  or  illegal 
acts  of  mine  they  had  unearthed? 

According  to  Goodhart's  own  words  they 
had  been  looking  up  my  record  and  yet  not 
one  agent  could  be  found  to  testify  against  me. 
Does  this  not  seem  strange?  Why  could  he 
not  coax  Cullison  or  Davis  to  put  in  an  appear- 
ance and  so  give  me  an  opportunity  to  ask 
them  why  they  had  waited  until  this  late  date 
to  investigate  my  purity. 

Cullison  had  known  me  for  years.  Davis 
had  known  me  five  years.  He  had  made 
commissions  by  placing  my  clients  on  the  stage. 
He  occasionally  had  accepted  my  hospitality 
and  I  had  also  assisted  him  by  referring  young 
women  to  his  dancing  academy  which  he  con- 
ducted in  connection  with  his  agency.  He  once 
offered  me'  part  of  his  tuition  fees  in  consider- 
ation of  sending  these  pupils  to  him.  But  I  felt 
he  was  entitled  to  it  all  so  refused  with  thanks. 

Davis  has  written  me  many  letters.  One 
will  suffice  to  explain  the  tenor  of  all: 

"AUSTIN  DAVIS  THEATRICAL 

EXCHANGE" 

45   West  Twenty-ninth  Street, 

New  York,  September  29.    1904. 

Mr.   Jared  Flagg: 

Dear  Sir — A  few  lines  to  thank  you  for 
remembering  the  office.  The  young  lady 
called  to-day  and  arranged  with  my  wife  for 
a  course  of  chorus  training.  In  regard  to 
the  other  young  ladies  I  will  let  you  hear 
from  me  in  a  day  or  two  as  to  the  exact 
time  I  shall  want  them  in  the  city.  I  refer 
to  the  six   I   spoke  to  you  about. 

Would    be    pleased   to    have    you    call    any 


120 

evening    you    can.      With    best    wishes    1    re- 
main. 

Yours  respectfully, 
(signed)    AUSTIN    DAVIS." 

The  reader  may  notice  this  communication 
is  dated  September  29,  1  904.  It  was  along  in 
1905  and  1906  that  Davis  and  Cullison  and 
others  commenced  to  feel  uneasy  because  the 
managers  were  sending  their  orders  direct  to 
me  thus  curtailing  the  fees  formerly  paid  to 
the  agents.  Now  I  was  doing  the  "booking" 
and  yet  only  charging  a  two  dollar  fee.  This, 
Davis  and  some  of  the  other  agents  thought, 
was  a  little  "too  much  of  a  good  thing."  Davis 
became  alarmed  and  started  in  with  others, 
so  Lawyer  Goodhart  says,  to  look  up  my 
record.  He  said  it;  and  it  is  down  in  black 
and  white  on  the  minutes  of  my  third  hearing 
before  the  License  Commissioner.  But  how 
embarrassing  I  would  have  made  it  for  these 
agents  had  they  "shown  up"  at  my  hearing. 
Think  of  the  letters  I  would  have  requested 
them  to  read! 

At  the  time  of  my  hearing  there  was  not  in 
all  this  city  a  theatrical  agent  who  had  not 
transacted  business  w^ith  me;  and  letters!  I 
had  them  by  the  hundreds — the  most  cordial 
kind — thanking  me  for  favors  extended.  Think 
how  these  men  would  have  enjoyed  reading 
those  letters  and  identifying  their  signatures. 
Think  of  the  questions  I  would  have  asked. 
Would  I  have  wanted  to  know  why  they  had 
waited  so  long  before  manifesting  a  disposition 
to  investigate  my  morality?  Would  any  one 
of  them  have  dared  give  the  real  reason?  Can 
you  see  now  why  they  kept  in  the  background 
and  held  their  secret  meetings  behind  locked 
doors  in  Cullison's  office  and  elected  to  make 
"scapegoats"  of  Helen  Arthur,  Charlotte  Smith, 
Goodhart  and  Bogart? 


r 


I2» 

This  quartette  they  put  to  the  front  to  do 
their  "dirty  work,"  and  the  following  dates  in- 
dicate how  well  they  did  it: 

The  invitation  to  the  secret  Sunday  night 
meeting  was  dated  March  20th,  1 906.  The 
meeting  itself  was  held  five  days  later,  March 
25  th.  The  letter  introducing  Charlotte  Smith 
to  Goodhart  was  dated  one  day  later,  March 
26th.  The  letter  containing  the  bogus  charges 
was  dated  eight  days  later,  April  3d.  The 
letter  notifying  me  to  appear  before  the  License 
Commissioner  was  dated  twenty-three  days 
later,  April  26th.  The  hearing  was  held  two 
days  later,  April  28th,  and  May  2d,  1906. 
three  days  later  I  was  out  of  business. 

Any  missing  links  in  this  chain?  Any  link 
which  does  not  connect  with  the  preceding  and 
succeeding  one?  Do  not  the  dates  "dovetail" 
in  perfect  sequence  as  step  by  step  the  plot  un- 
folds itself?  If  dramatized  could  there  be  a 
better  satire  on  justice? 

"All  parties  become  partners  to  a  conspiracy 
even  if  the  part  they  enact  be  a  subordinate 
one." 

If  the  reader  thinks  that  Goodhart  who 
drafted  and  signed  the  aforementioned  letter 
of  April  3d,  1 906,  charging  me  with  having 
enticed  girls  to  houses  of  ill-repute,  etc.,  com- 
mitted an  overt  act,  it  is  not  essential  that  his 
criminal  intent  be  shown,  provided  the  letter 
speaks  for  itself.  If  the  reader  is  under  the  im- 
pression that  this  letter  reeking  with  spurious 
lying  statements  does  speak  for  itself,  then  he 
is  "at  liberty  to  infer  the  intent." 

So  much  for  Goodhart.  Now  Bogart.  Who 
is  Bogart?  He  is  a  man  who  swore  when  ap- 
pointed Commissioner  of  Licenses  to  conduct 
his  office  in  an  impartial  manner.  He  is  a  man 
whom  the  people,  through  their  Mayor,  have 
vested  with  extraordinary  powers;   the  power 


122 

to  act  as  prosecutor,  defender,  jury  and  judge. 
Hence,  it  becomes  his  sacred  duty  to  conserve 
the  rights  of  the  accused  as  well  as  those  of 
the  accusers  and  in  taking  his  oath  of  office  he 
swore  so  to  do.  Keep  this  in  mind  when 
reading  the  following. 

Mr.  Bogart  knew  twenty-five  days  before 
notifying  me  to  appear,  that  the  charge  of  ad- 
vertising for  girls  to  act  as  artists'  models  was 
to  be  made  and  he  also  knew  that  those  who 
were  to  prefer  this  charge  had  no  grounds  for 
making  it. 

There  is  no  law  to  prevent  young  women 
from  posing  for  artists.  If  there  were  no 
models  there  would  be  no  pictures  or  statuary. 
But  I  never  advertised  for  artists'  models;  and 
had  I  attempted  to,  could  not,  for  the  reason 
that  no  newspaper  will  accept  an  advertisement 
of  this  nature.  If  there  is  such  a  thing  as  pre- 
sumptive evidence  it  is  to  be  presumed  Mr. 
Bogart  was  aware'  of  this  fact.  It  is  part  of 
his  official  business  to  scan  daily  every  help 
wanted  advertisement  that  appears  in  the  news- 
papers. The  city  supplies  him  with  papers 
expressly  for  this  purpose,  and  he  must  have 
known  the  charge  was  ridiculous  on  its  face. 
Yet  he  not  only  authorized  it  to  be  made  but 
accepted  the  letter  in  which  it  was  made  as 
evidence. 

In  his  return  to  a  writ  of  certiorari  this  man, 
who  had  sworn  to  conduct  the  business  of  his 
office  impartially,  admits  he  knew  twenty-five 
days  before  he  notified  me  to  appear  that  the 
charge  was  to  be  made  that  I  had  served  a 
sentence  in  Auburn  State's  Prison.  Think  of 
it.  He  admits  he  knew  the  accusation  was  to 
be  made  twenty-five  days  before  it  was  made; 
and  yet  during  all  this  time,  three  weeks  and 
over,  this  high  official  who  had  sworn  to  con- 
serve the  rights  of  the  accused  as  well  as  those 


123 

of  the  accuser  did  not  telephone,  telegraph, 
write  or  cause  to  be  written  one  word  to  the 
Warden  of  Auburn  State's  Prison;  nor  did  he, 
or  any  other  person,  in  any  manner  communi- 
cate directly  or  indirectly  with  the  Warden  or 
with  any  other  person  in  authority  at  Auburn 
or  with  the  Prison  Department  at  Albany,  or 
make  the  slightest  effort  or  demand  the  slight- 
est proof  from  any  one  to  substantiate  the 
charge. 

The  official  records  of  the  License  Bureau 
show  that  this  fact  stands  uncontradicted  and 
admitted.  Yet,  in  the  face  of  it,  Bogart, 
knowing  I  was  transacting  a  large  business  sis 
shown  by  the  bi-monthly  reports  taken  from 
my  books  by  his  Deputy  Commissioners  and 
submitted  to  him  for  inspection,  allowed  them 
to  iTiake  this  charge.  Knowing,  as  he  must 
have  known  from  these  reports,  that  I  had 
thousands  of  clients,  young  women  and  men,  in 
this  city  and  in  all  parts  of  the  country,  he 
sanctioned  the  making  of  this  charge,  the 
charge  that  I  had  served  a  sentence  of  two 
years  for  decoying  girls  to  houses  of  ill-repute. 
Before  he  permitted  this  charge  to  be  made  in 
public  did  he  know  it  would  be  reported  in 
the  public  press;  and  that,  true  or  false,  my 
business  would  be  ruined  and  my  reputation 
damned?  Yes,  he  knew  it.  The  minutes  of 
the  hearing  prove  I  told  him  so  myself. 

Before  the  letter  was  read  aloud  it  was 
shown  to  me.  I  pronounced  it  a  tissue  of  lies 
and  protested  for  all  I  was  worth  against  having 
it  read  in  public  until  an  investigation  had  been 
made.  But  as  their  only  aim  and  his  only  aim 
was  to  have  it  published  in  the  papers,  he, 
John  N.  Bogart,  in  my  presence  and  against 
my  emphatic  protest  and  with  a  police  officer 
at  my  back  ready  to  yank  me  out  of  the  room 
if  I  created  a  scene,  this  public  official  whose 


124 

sworn  duty  it  was  to  guard  my  rights  ordered 
this  letter  of  April  3d,  1 906,  containing  the 
infamous  and  false  charges  to  be  read  aloud 
in  public. 

The  good-will  of  a  straightforward  business 
is  valuable.  Anything  of  value  is  property. 
Without  due  process  of  law  we  have  no  right 
to  deprive  a  person  of  his  property.  Did 
Bogart  deprive  me  of  my  property  (the  value 
of  the  good-will  of  my  business)  without  due 
process  of  law  when  he  without  having 
made  any  investigation  gave  that  letter  to  the 
newspapers  ? 

The  injury  was  inflicted  there  and  then. 
Lies  have  a  stupendous  circulation.  And  so 
quickly  did  the  false  report  spread  that  almost 
from  the  moment  it  was  given  to  the  press  n^y 
clients  (and  remember  I  had  thousands  of  them 
in  all  parts  of  the  country  with  no  way  of  im- 
parting the  truth  to  them)  regarded  me  with 
derision  and  my  office  as  quarantined.  From 
that  moment  they  shunned  it  as  if  it  w^ere  in- 
fected with  a  plague,  and  probably  shuddered 
at  their  supposed  narrow  escape.  It  may  have 
been  difficult  to  believe  that  their  agent  had 
been  guilty  of  sending  clients  to  houses  of  ill- 
repute  but  it  was  in  the  newspapers  and  so 
must  be  true.  Then  they  began  to  fear  that 
their  relatives  and  friends  might  believe  they 
had  been  sent  to  these  houses  of  ill-repute.  So 
this  vile  charge  reflected  on  them  as  well  eis 
on  me. 

It  was  not  only  reported  in  the  daily  but  also 
in  the  weekly  dramatic  papers  which  are  read 
by  theatrical  people  everywhere. 

"Flagg  served  a  sentence  of  two  years  in 
Auburn  State's  Prison  for  the  crime  of  decoy- 
ing girls  to  houses  of  ill-repute,"  was  the  way 
one  leading  theatrical  paper — The  Morning 
Telegraph  of  May  2d,  1 906 — announced  the 
news. 


125 

And  the  New  York  Herald  of  April  29th, 
1906,  in  headline  letters  stated:  "Woman's 
Leagues  of  high  repute  protest  against  a  renew- 
al of  license  for  Jared  Flagg.  It  is  charged 
he  conducted  his  agency  for  improper  pur- 
poses." 

The  New  York  World  of  May  3d,  1906. 
came  out  with  the  following: 

"Flagg  denied  a  license.  It  has  been  inti- 
mated that  his  agency  was  in  reality  a  feeder 
for  disorderly  houses." 

Other  New  York  papers  made  similiar  state- 
ments. 

Was  this  the  news  Bogart  and  the  others 
wanted  my  clients  and  their  parents  to  read? 

No  man  should  be  given  the  power  to  make 
public  without  justification  such  a  charge,  cast- 
ing such  reflection  on  such  a  number  of  in- 
nocent persons? 

Fathers,  mothers  and  brothers  rushed  to  my 
office.  One  brought  a  policeman.  "My  sister 
— my  daughter — was  your  client.  Tell  me — 
tell  me  the  truth — did  you  ever — ever  since 
she  has  been  coming  to  your  office — ask  her — 
send  her — try  to  persuade  her  to  go  to  a  dis- 
reputable house?"  Trembling  w^ith  rage;  ready 
to  tear  me  to  pieces;  these  questions  were  fired 
at  me;  and  had  it  not  been  for  telephone  mes- 
sages received  by  them  from  Auburn  Prison 
authorities  in  response  to  urgent  inquiries  my 
life  would  not  have  been  worth  two  cents. 
They  upset  chairs,  jammed  and  surged  and 
forced  their  way  into  my  private  office.  Be- 
hind the  uniformed  officer  I  stood,  poking  hinx 
in  the  ribs,  urging  him  to  act  quickly  and  ar- 
rest me,  but  he  heeded  me  not — the  police 
never  were  disposed  to  accommodate  me. 

And,  only  to  think!  Just  one  little  cent 
would  have  obviated  placing  me  in  this  false 


126 

position.  A  penny  postal  card  addressed  to 
the  Warden  would  have  brought  back  the 
truth  and  well  John  N.  Bogart  knew  it.  He 
knew  it  so  mightily  well  he  did  not  do  it;  but 
I  did  and  received  the  following: 

"To  whom  it  may  concern: 

Thia  is  to  certify  a  careful  examination  has  been 
made  of  the  records  of  Auburn  Prison,  and  the  name, 
Jared  Flagg,  does  not  appear  among  the  names  of 
those  received  between  the  years  of  1894  and  1898. 
Furthermore,  the  above  name  does  not  appear  on  the 
records  prior  or  subsequent  to  the  above  mentioned 
period. 

(Signed)    George  W.   Benham, 

Warden  Auburn  State's  Prison." 

This  document  not  only  bore  the  official 
seal  of  Auburn  State's  Prison  but  was  certified 
to  by  the  Prison  Department  at  Albany. 

With  this  paper  I  personally  appealed  to  the 
newspapers  to  set  me  right  with  my  clients  and 
the  public  by  publishing  it.  But  not  one  of 
them,  the  city  dailies  or  dramatic  weeklies,  al- 
though not  questioning  its  authenticity,  would 
do  so.  They  published  the  lies  but  were  un- 
willing to  publish  the  truth. 

You  can  say  what  you  like  it  was  pretty 
tough;  they  were  pounding  me  hard.  The 
esteem  of  thousands  one  day;  the  condem- 
nation of  millions  the  next  day.  To  stand  up 
under  this,  required  fortitude.  But  I  am  not 
asking  commiseration.     I  want  only  justice. 

Now  if  the  reader  thinks  that  Mr.  Bogart  by 
abusing  the  power  conferred  upon  him  aided 
another  or  others  in  bringing  about  this  de- 
plorable state  of  affairs;  if  he  thinks  he  acted 
unjustly  in  permitting  Lawyer  Goodhart,  with- 
out a  semblance  of  evidence,  without  having 
made  the  slightest  investigation,  to  stand  in 
public  and  accuse  me  of  having  served  a  sen- 


127 

tence  in  Auburn  State's  Prison  for  the  crime 
of  decoying  young  girls  to  houses  of  ill-repute 
thereby  deceiving  numberless  fathers  and 
mothers  and  causing  them  to  visit  their  wrath 
upon  me,  when  he,  Bogart,  had  had  so  much 
time,  twenty-five  days,  and  could  so  easily 
have  ascertained  the  truth;  and  if  the  reader 
thinks  any  or  all  of  these  acts  tend  to  show 
conspiracy  on  the  part  of  Mr.  Bogart,  in  con- 
junction with  others,  then  provided  the  afore- 
mentioned "acts  speak  for  themselves,  he  is  at 
liberty  to  infer  the  intent."  So  much  for 
Bogart. 

All  during  the  time  between  the  secret  Sun- 
day night  meeting  in  Cullison's  office  and  up 
to  the  very  day  of  the  hearing,  I  was  in  total 
ignorance  of  what  was  going  on.  I  did  not 
have  an  inkling  of  the  trouble  brewing,  the 
plot,  the  whispered  conversations  along  the 
"Rialto,"  the  underhanded  interviews  at  the 
License  Commissioner's  office  with  Miss 
Arthur,  Mrs.  Smith,  Keating,  Cullison,  Good- 
hart  and  others.  All  this  time  I  was  attending 
to  my  business  without  a  suspicion  that  others 
were  scheming  to  wreck  it.  The  first  intimation 
of  anything  wrong  came  in  a  letter  of  which 
the  following  is  a  copy: 

"New  York,  April  26th,    1906. 
Mr.  Jared  Flagg: 

Dear  Sir — ^The  Commissioner  of  Licenses 
directs  me  to  inform  you  that  an  objection 
has  been  lodged  against  the  issuance  of  a 
license  to  you. 

Mr.  L.  G.  Goodhart,  attorney  for  tBe 
Woman's  Rescue  League,  has  entered  the 
objection  and  has  asked  for  a  hearing.  The 
Commissioner  will  hear  his  objection  and 
that  of  any  person  who  may  appear  on 
Saturday  next,  April  28th,  1906,  at  10:30 
o'clock  a.  m.,  in  his  office,  and  asks  that 
you  be  present  or  represented. 

John  J.  Caldwell,  Secretary." 
Yours  truly. 


328 

Even  after  reading  this  I  did  not  regard 
the  matter  as  serious.  I  knew  no  client  of  mine 
had  just  cause  to  complain.  1  felt  it  was  some 
niistake  and  whatever  it  might  be  it  would  ad- 
just itself. 

This  is  what  I  saw  in  the  office  of  the  Com- 
missioner, 277  Broadway,  Borough  of  Man- 
hattan, to  wit: — A  large  room  and  a  long  table, 
at  one  end  of  which  was  a  seat  reserved  for 
the  Commissioner.  A  stenographer  occupied 
a  chair  to  the  left.  A  police  officer  showed 
me  to  the  next  chair.  To  the  right  of  the 
Commissioner's  chair  was  F.  L.  C.  Keating, 
formerly  License  Commissioner  but  now  at- 
torney for  the  Theatrical  Agents'  Society.  In 
the  chair  next  to  his  and  directly  opposite  mine 
'Was  L.  G.  Goodhart,  attorney  for  the  alleged 
**Woman's  Rescue  League,"  Then  came  Helen 
Arthur,  attorney  for  the  Woman's  Municipal 
League,  and  several  of  her  female  cronies — 
not  witnesses;  she  could  produce  none.  At 
the  far  end  of  the  table  a  dozen  or  more  re- 
porters were  seated. 

In  due  time  the  "Honorable"  John  N. 
Bogart,  Commissioner  of  Licenses,  who  was  to 
act  as  Judge,  emerged  from  the  ante  chamber 
followed  by  Charlotte  Smith,  the  self-styled 
president  of  the  alleged  "National  and  Inter- 
national Woman's  Rescue  League  "  for  which 
Lawyer  Goodhart  claimed  to  be  counsel. 

The  Commissioner  was  solemn.  All  were 
solemn  and  well  they  might  be.  They  were 
about  to  deprive  a  fellow-being  of  his  in- 
alienable right — the  right  to  make  an  honest 
living  in  his  chosen  vocation.  But  this  was 
not  all,  they  were  about  to  steal  from  him  his 
name.  Whatever  it  was  worth  to  him  in  his 
relation  with  mankind,  they  were  about  to  take 
it  from  him,  not  unintentionally  but  intention- 
silly,  knowing  what  they  were  doing,  knowing 


129 

and  not  caring,  knowing  they  were  thieves, 
differing  in  no  respect  from  the  commonest 
sneak-thief — unless  it  be  that  they  lacked  his 
courage.  Generally  when  a  thief  is  caught 
"red-handed,"  he  owns  up  like  a  "major." 
But  these  long-faced  sanctimonious  Pharisees, 
when  caught  in  the  act  tried  to  lie  out  of  it 
by  pretending  they  did  not  know  what  they 
were  doing. 

At  that  time  I,  knowing  nothing  about  the 
plot  to  ruin  me,  and  not  for  one  moment  sup- 
posing the  License  Commissioner  of  this  great 
city  was  a  man  devoid  of  honor,  attended  the 
hearing  without  counsel.  Lawyer  Goodhart 
noticing  this  asked  with  an  air  of  self-righteous- 
ness if  he  might  address  a  few  words  to  the 
defendant.  "It  is  only  fair  that  he  should  he 
cautioned.  Mr.  Flagg  is  not  a  lawyer  and  we 
do  not  wish  to  take  undue  advantage  of  him. 
He  should  be  told  that  anything  he  may  say  at 
this  hearing  may  hereafter  be  used  against 
him." 

Think  of  a  lawyer  getting  off  a  speech  like 
that  and  in  the  next  breath  reading  aloud  the 
lies  contained  in  the  letter  of  April  3d,  1  906. 
He  knew  and  they  knew  that  they  would  be 
unable  to  substantiate  the  charge  that  I  had 
served  a  term  in  any  prison  for  the  crime  of 
decoying  girls  to  houses  of  ill-repute  or  for  any 
other  crime;  but  they  were  cunning  enough  to 
know  that  such  an  accusation  would  work  in- 
calculable injury  to  me.  It  was  part  of  their 
plot  to  end  my  career  as  an  agent;  the  first 
move,  as  it  were,  and  the  moment  it  had  been 
made  every  newspaper  man  present  recorded 
it.      Then  all  eyes  were  turned  on  me. 

Considering  I  had  never  even  seen  Auburn 
State's  Prison  I  expressed  a  desire  to  see  its 
records.  "Certainly,"  replied  the  Commission- 
er; and  to  preserve  his  dignity  in  the  eyes  of 


130 

the  reporters  he  turned  to  Lawyer  Goodhart 
and  in  a  take-it-for-granted  way  said:  "Coun- 
selor, show  Mr.  Flagg  your  certified  copy  of 
the  prison  records."  He  said  it  just  as  if  he 
supposed  Goodhart  really  had  such  a  copy 
when  he  knew  all  the  time,  as  Goodhart  knew, 
that  no  prison  records  implicating  me  existed. 
Goodhart  attributed  his  inability  to  procure 
the  records  to  his  floating  kidney  which  was 
causing  him  trouble.  This  bit  of  side  play  was 
obviously  for  the  purpose  of  deceiving  the  re- 
porters and  conveying  the  impression  to  the 
public  that  such  a  document  existed. 

"Give  me  three  days  and  I  will  produce  it,' 
said  Mr.  Goodhart.  "Well,  see  that  you  do," 
remarked  the  Commissioner,  "or  I  shall  renew 
Mr.  Flagg's  license."  An  adjournment  of 
three  days  was  then  ordered  ostensibly  for  this 
purpose. 

A  direct  charge  if  false  can  usually  be  re- 
futed but  an  insinuation  however  groundless  is 
not  easy  to  overthrow. 

The  Smith  woman  and  the  female  lawyer, 
Helen  Arthur,  aware  of  this,  immediately  after 
the  sham  "hearing,"  unblushingly  "button- 
holed" the  reporters  and  proceeded  to  throw 
out  hints — "It  is  intimated,"  they  whispered, 
"that  his  agency  is  being  used  for  immoral 
purposes.  No!  We  have  no  evidence  but  ex- 
pect to  have.  Both  Mrs.  Smith  and  myself," 
said  Helen  Arthur,  "are  heartily  in  accord  and 
together  we  propose  to  ferret  out  and  follow 
up  every  clue." 

The  reporters  asked  if  any  of  my  clients  had 
complained.  "We  do  not  like  to  say.  No, 
we  can  give  no  names  or  addresses  at  present 
— it  would  hardly  be  prudent.  Later  we  may 
make  a  statement  to  the  press.  If  you  mention 
my  name  please  note  that  I  am  at  the  head  of 
the    'Research    Department    of    the    Woman's 


^ 


131 


Municipal  League,'  "  said  Miss  Arthur.  "And 
if  my  name  is  to  be  mentioned,"  said  Mrs. 
Smith,  "please  note  that  I  am  the  President  of 
the  'National  and  International  Woman's  Res- 
cue League  of  New  York,  London  and  Paris. 
No!  We  have  no  New  York  office.  No!  We 
have  no  London  office.  No!  We  have  no 
Paris  office;  but  we  expect  to  have,"  remarked 
Mrs.  Smith  as  she  smilingly  bid  the  Com- 
missioner and  reporters  adieu. 

When  two  women  posing  as  reformers  and 
thirsting  for  free  newspaper  advertising  get 
their  clutches  on  a  dozen  or  more  "space 
writers"  there  is  no  computing  the  damage 
they  may  do. 

Now  for  the  moment  place  yourself  in  my 
position,  try  to  imagine  what  your  sensations 
would  have  been  the  morning  after  these  fe- 
male mischief  makers  had  got  in  their  "fine 
work"  on  the  reporters  at  this  burlesque 
"hearing."  If  with  honor  and  integrity  you 
had  built  up  a  business  from  nothing  to  some- 
thing; if  for  six  long  years.  Winter  and  Summer, 
you  had  worked  early  and  late;  if  you  had 
dealt  and  talked  with  thousands  of  people, 
ambitious,  intelligent  and  worthy  young  women 
and  young  men,  all  eager  to  "make  good"  and 
advance  in  their  profession;  if  you  had  by 
square  dealing  gained  their  esteem;  if  they  not 
only  returned  year  after  year  to  do  business 
with  you,  but  referred  their  friends  to  you;  if 
you  were  acquainted  with  many  of  their  par- 
ents, and  if  these  fathers  and  these  mothers 
also  reposed  confidence  in  you,  respected  you, 
depended  on  your  honesty  and  judgment  to 
advise  them  with  which  managers,  in  which 
companies,  it  would  be  safe  to  entrust  their 
sons  and  daughters;  and  if  you  had  in  the 
profession  many  acquaintances,  playwrights  of 
renown,  actors  and  actresses  whose  names  are 


132 

known  over  the  breadth  of  the  land;  and  if 
you  were  acquainted  with  all  the  leading  stage 
directors,  honorable  men,  anxious  to  aid  you, 
to  see  you  prosper,  men  who  did  not  hesitate 
to  endorse  you,  to  recommend  you,  and  who 
would  go  out  of  their  way  to  favor  you;  if  you 
had  such  business  acquaintances,  and  if  you 
felt  grateful;  if  you  had  failed  in  previous 
undertakings,  but  could  now  see  success  ahead ; 
and  if  it  made  life  seem  worth  living;  if  it 
seemed  to  you  (as  it  did  to  me)  that  you  were 
accomplishing  something  in  the  world,  pro- 
curing honest  employment  for  thousands  of 
honest  persons,  and  if  it  were  a  greater  satis- 
faction to  you  even  than  the  cash  profits;  if 
you  valued  more  highly  than  money,  the  high 
regard  in  which  you  were  held  by  those  with 
whom  you  had  business  dealings;  in  short,  if 
you  were  at  peace  with  the  world,  if  you  had 
enemies,  but  were  willing  to  overlook  and  for- 
get past  differences,  willing  to  blame  yourself 
instead  of  them;  if  you  had  thought  it  all  over 
and  were  willing  to  let  bygones  be  bygones, 
willing  to  forgive  everyone,  feeling  that  there 
was,  that  there  is,  in  each  man's  life  sorrow 
and  suffering  enough  to  disarm  you  of  all 
hostility;  if  this  were  how  you  felt;  and  if  you 
had  friends,  not  the  fair-weather  kind,  the  kind 
that  are  afflicted  with  affected  accents  or  w^ith 
social  aspirations  and  whose  knees  quake  at 
the  thought  of  appearing  as  witnesses  in  courts 
of  law  or  of  getting  their  names  in  newspapers, 
not  the  moral  cowards  who  value  above  all 
earthly  possessions  the  superficial  courtesies  ex- 
tended to  them  by  members  of  their  social 
set — I  do  not  mean  that  kind — ^but  real  friends, 
the  kind  that  don't  scare  and  will  stand  by, 
shoulder  to  shoulder  with  you,  "true  as  steel," 
when  clouds  are  gathering  and  when  the  future 
looks  dark;  if  you  had  such  friends:  and  if  you 


133 

had  relatives  who  felt  you  had  disgraced  the 
family  name,  though  not  intentionally,  and 
were  therefore  staunch  and  true,  uncles,  aunts, 
cousins,  nieces,  and  nephews;  and  if  you  had 
brothers,  any  one  of  whom  would  share  his 
last  dollar  with  you,  brothers  who  would  not 
permit  any  man  or  woman,  not  even  an  old 
friend  of  the  family,  to  malign  you;  if  you  had 
such  brothers — whom  you  loved  and  a  mother 
whom  you  loved — and  sisters  whom  you  loved, 
how  would  you  feel  to  have  her — and  them — 
and  all  the  others — some  fine  morning  open 
the  newspapers — not  one — but  all  the  papers 
—and  read  that  powerful  societies — the  The- 
atrical Agents'  Society  and  also  Benevolent 
Women's  Leagues  of  high  repute  had  intimated 
— i  n  t  i  m  a  t  e  d — that  your  place  of  business 
— your  office — was  not  what  it  appeared  to  be 
— a  legitimate  agency — but  a  "feeder"  for  dis- 
orderly houses;  how  do  you  think  you  w^ould 
feel?      How  do  you  think  I  felt> 


134 


CHAx^TER   8.  I 

A  swelled  head  is  incurable,  yet  however 
arrogant  a  public  official  may  be  to  individuals, 
he  fears  the  people  as  a  whole.  Bogart,  the 
license  official,  feared  the  newspapers — the 
people — and  this  explains  why  he  laid  stress 
on  the  three  days  adjournment. 

,"I  shall  grant  this  adjournment,"  he  said, 
"for  the  purpose  of  giving  us  time  to  com- 
municate with  the  warden,  and  if  copies  of  the 
prison  records  implicating  Mr.  Flagg  are  not 
here  in  three  days  I  shall  issue  a  license  to 
him."  These  are  his  words  copied  from  the 
minutes  and  they  sounded  all  right  to  the  re- 
porters but  all  wrong  to  me.  Why  should  a 
person  who  had  had  twenty-five  days  to  in- 
vestigate a  simple  matter  want  three  days 
more?  It  was  a  subterfuge  to  create  the  im- 
pression I  had  in  reality  served  such  a  term  and 
in  three  days  proof  thereof  would  be  forth- 
coming. This  was  the  impression  the  news- 
papers conveyed  to  the  public.  But  the  proof 
did  not  come;  and  yet  Mr.  Bogart  despite  his 
promise  did  not  give  me  my  license. 

What  would  you,  the  reader,  say  if  you  in 
place  of  me  had  been  accused  of  a  crime  and 
brought  before  a  judge  and  had  told  him  you 
were  falsely  accused — ^what  would  you  say  if 
he  had  said  to  you,  "All  right,  if  I  find  that  to 
be  true  I  will  see  that  you  are  not  punished, 
and  in  order  to  give  myself  time  to  investigate 
I  shall  lay  your  case  over  for  three  days?" 

That  might  seem  straight  but  at  the  expira- 
tion  of   three    days — the   expiration — suppose 


135 

then  you  had  asked  his  "Honor"  if  he  had 
made  the  investigation;  what  would  you  say  if 
he  told  you  he  had  not,  but  in  the  exercise  of 
his  "discretion'  has  decided  to  punish  you 
anyway,  with  or  without  evidence,  what  kind 
of  judge  would  you  say  you  were  up  against? 
The  "Honorable"  John  N.  Bogart  sent  for 
no  proof  before  ordering  the  charge  to  be 
made  against  me.  He  sent  for  no  proof  after 
ordering  the  charge  to  be  made  against  me. 
I  hold  a  letter  signed  by  the  Warden  of  Auburn 
Prison  to  the  effect  that  no  person  (that  is, 
among  the  conspirators)  either  before  or  after 
the  charge  was  made  public  had  inquired  re- 
garding the  matter. 

Had  Mr.  Bogart  or  any  of  the  others  w^ritten 
he  would  have  received  word  that  there  was 
no  truth  in  the  charge.  But  did  Mr.  Bogart 
or  the  others  have  any  use  for  the  truth?  They 
were  only  interested  in  covering  up  the  truth. 
They  were  out  to  injure  me  and  the  injury  was 
inflicted  the  moment  the  charge  was  made 
against  me  in  public. 

In  the  License  Bureau  dishonest  rulings  were 
the  rule  and  my  case  was  not  an  exception. 

The  New  York  Evening  Journal,  under  date 
of  November  5th,  1908,  when  commenting  on 
a  preliminary  report  made  to  Mayor  McClell- 
an  by  the  Commissioner  of  Accounts  stated, 
"the  License  Bureau  of  this  city  is  rotten  to  the 
core." 

It  took  them  a  long  time  to  find  it  out.  I 
could  have  given  them  this  information  three 
years  before. 

No  man  should  be  privileged  to  summon  a 
reputable  citizen  to  appear  at  a  public  hearing 
for  the  purpose  of  ruining  his  business  and 
reputation.  But  Mr.  Bogart  had  this  preroga- 
tive. He  occupied  a  position  so  exalted  he 
W31S  privileged  to  ignore  all  evidence  however 


136 

vital  and  under  the  license  law  could  in  the 
"exercise  of  his  discretion"  ruin  a  man's  busi- 
ness and  reputation  without  rendering  himself 
amenable  to  the  law.  This  is  what  he  said 
and  I  guess  he  is  correct. 

Before  recording  the  events  of  my  second 
session  with  his  "Honor"  the  reader  should 
be  informed  of  all  that  took  place  during  the 
three  days  interval  between  the  first  and  second 
hearings.  They  were  not  considerate  enough 
to  inform  me  in  advance  but  I  shall  inform  the 
reader. 

Having  made  this  Auburn  Prison  charge 
against  me  without  an  atom  of  evidence  they 
decided  before  making  a  second  charge  to 
manufacture  a  little  evidence. 

In  the  License  Bureau  they  had  a  young 
lawyer,  Henry  N.  Steinert.  Mr.  Steinert  says 
Mr.  Bogart  told  him  to  go  to  the  General 
Sessions  Court  and  have  a  talk  with  William 
Hanna.  Mr.  Hanna  is  first  assistant  to  Chief 
Clerk  Edward  R.  Carroll  of  the  said  court. 
Bogart  won't  tell  what  he  told  Steinert  to  say 
to  Hanna.  Steinert  won't  tell  what  he  told 
Hanna  to  say  to  Carroll  and  Hanna  won't  tell 
what  he  told  Carroll  to  do,  but  as  I  shall  tell 
you  what  Carroll  did  do  you  can  draw  your 
own  conclusions. 

This  Chief  Clerk  has  charge  of  the  official 
records  of  said  court.  The  records  of  my 
"flat  trial"  were  in  his  custody.  He  held  the 
combination  to  the  vault  in  which  they  were 
kept.  Bogart  knew  this  and  Bogart  said  some- 
thing to  Steinert.  Do  not  forget  that.  Stein- 
ert said  something  to  Hanna.  Keep  this  in 
mind  also.  And  after  Hanna  had  said  some- 
thing to  Carroll,  Carroll  entered  the  vault  and 
"dug  up"  the  records  of  my  "flat  trial." 

To  prove  an  innocent  person  guilty  in  New 
York  City,   that  is,   to  legally  prove  a  person 


137 

guilty  of  any  count  in  an  indictment  on  which 
he  had  been  adjudged  not  guilty  it  is  necessary 
to  go  through  more  or  less  "red  tape." 

As  stated,  years  ago  I  had  been  adjudged 
not  guilty  of  renting  flats  for  immoral  purposes. 
Therefore,  to  legally  prove  I  was  guilty  of  this 
offense,  it  was  essential  not  exactly  to  alter  all 
the  minutes  of  my  trial  on  file  in  the  said 
court,  but  simply  to  have  the  chief  clerk  there- 
of draft  a  copy  of  the  said  mmutes  with  such 
little  variations  as  might  be  necessary  to  make 
it  easy  for  the  License  Commissioner  to  per- 
suade himself  the  verdict  of  my  jury  was  not 
what  it  purported  to  be. 

This  was  done. 

In  the  original  records  the  word  "misde- 
meanor" appears.  In  the  certified  copy  the 
word  "felony"  takes  its  place. 

In  the  original  the  word  "indicted"  appears. 
In  the  certified  copy  the  word  *  "convicted" 
takes  its  place. 

In  the  original  the  word  "dismissed"  ap- 
pears. In  the  certified  copy  the  word  "sen- 
tenced" takes  its  place. 

When  a  sworn  certified  copy  of  the  minutes 
of  a  trial  carries  the  signature  of  the  chief 
clerk  of  the  court  in  which  the  case  was  tried 
also  the  official  seal  it  is  regarded  as  "knock- 
down" evidence. 

This  counterfeit  certificate  carried  the  seal  of 
the  General  Sessions  Court.  William  Hanna 
stamped  it  thereon.  It  also  carried  the  signa- 
ture of  the  chief  clerk,  E.  R.  Carroll.  After 
Mr.  Carroll  had  affixed  his  signature  he  gave 
it  to  Lawyer  Steinert  of  the  License  Bureau 
who  carried  it  from  the  Criminal  Courts  Build- 
ing to  Commissioner  Bogart.  Can  you  arrive 
at  a  conclusion  now  as  to  what  Bogart  said 
to  Steinert,  and  what  Steinert  said  to  Hanna, 
and  what  Hanna  said  to  Carroll? 


138 

Nothing  is  easier  than  to  deceive  oneself.  I 
said  to  myself,  why  retain  a  lawyer  to  prove  I 
had  not  served  a  term  in  Auburn  State's  Prison 
when  all  the  lawyers  in  the  land  could  not 
prove  I  had  ever  seen  the  inside  or  even  the 
outside  of  its  walls?  Knowing  nothing  of  what 
had  taken  place  during  the  interval  this  was 
how  I  reasoned,  so  at  the  expiration  of  the 
three  days  adjournment  in  I  walked  without  a 
lawyer,  and  there  they  were — Charlotte  Smith 
with  her  white  kid  gloves.  Lawyer  Goodhart, 
with  his  two  pair  of  spectacles  on  his  nose, 
Bogart,  the  "Honorable,"  he  was  there;  ex- 
License  Commissioner  Keating  was  there  also 
notwithstanding  that  the  Tlieatrical  Agents' 
Society  which  he  was  supposed  to  represent  had 
notified  the  press,  the  License  Commissioner 
and  myself  that  it  had  no  complaints  to  make 
against  me. 

The  following  is  a  copy  of  the  letter  I  re- 
ceived and  Bogart  and  the  press  recdived 
similar  letters. 

"Jared  Flagg,  Esq. 

Dear    Sir — Our    association    has    made    no 
charges  against  you,  nor  are  any  pending. 
(Signed)    James  J.   Armstrong. 
President    Theatrical    Association 
1431    &    1433  Broadway,  N.  Y.  City." 

Helen  Arthur  also  sent  a  letter  of  which  the 
following  is  a  copy: — 

"License   Commissioner: 

Dear  Sir: — As  we  have  no  complaint  to 
make  against  Jared  Flagg  we  hereby  petition 
you  to  issue  a  theatrical  agent's  license  to 
him. 

Helen  Arthur, 

Woman's   Municipal   League 
19  East  Twenty-sixth  Street,  N.  Y.  City." 

Miss  Arthur  was  not  present  at  this  second 
hearing,  but  the  reporters  were  all  there  and 
when  I  glanced  at  their  end  of  the  table  they 


139 

nodded  politely.  This  was  a  bad  omen  and  I 
commenced  to  feel  uncomfortable.  Could  it 
be  possible  they  were  going  to  spring  some- 
thing new  on  me?  Some  other  bogus  charge? 
This  thought  flashed  through  my  mind;  and  I 
opened  the  meeting  without  being  asked  to  do 
so  by  requesting  the  Commissioner  to  produce 
the  Auburn  Prison  record  and  which  Lawyer 
Goodhart  had  agreed  to  present  at  this  hearing; 
but,  barring  myself  no  one  would  allude  to 
Auburn  State's  Prison. 

The  Commissioner  whom  I  was  addressing 
ignored  me  entirely  but  called  Lawyer  Good- 
hart  aside  and  in  a  low  tone  of  voice  (too  low 
for  the  reporters  to  hear  but  not  so  low  that  I 
was  unable  to  hear)  said  to  him,  "You  take  this 
document  and  present  it  to  me  at  the  hearing." 
Goodhart  took  the  bogus  certificate  which 
had  been  made  at  Bogart's  request  and  which 
Carroll  had  signed.  First  Goodhart,  standing 
by  a  window  away  from  all,  read  it  to  himself. 
He  then  came  over  to  the  table  and  read  the 
document  impressively  to  the  Commissioner. 

Goodhart  then  walked  to  where  the  report- 
ers were  seated ;  showed  the  document  to  them ; 
and  they  scrutinized  it  intently  and  copied 
certain  portions.  It  was  then  taken  to  the 
other  end  of  the  table  and  given  to  the  Com- 
missioner and  he  passed  it  to  me  for  inspection. 
If  ever  I  inspected  a  paper  it  was  that  one. 
With  care  and  deliberation  I  read  every  word. 
Little  did  I  dream  of  the  diabolical  plot 
which  was  being  perpetrated  on  me. 

The  document  had  every  appearance  of 
being  authentic.  After  having  read  it  twice 
over,  once  more  I  looked  at  the  words 
"felony,"  "convicted,"  "sentenced."  Could 
I  believe  my  own  eyes?  Was  I  worse  than  I 
thought  I  was?  And  again  I  looked,  I  looked 
at  the  gilt  seal  which  was  as  large  a«  a  small 
sized  buckwheat  cake. 


140 

We  seldom  regret  having  said  too  little.  At 
the  first  hearing  Goodhart  had  been  granted 
without  question  a  three  days  adjournment. 
Now  I  asked  for  a  like  adjournment  but  in- 
stantly there  was  a  storm  of  protest.  "If  not 
three,  make  it  one.  Give  me  a  day  to  in- 
vestigate this  matter.  If  true  you  can  act  on 
it  to-morrow,  I  said.  He  made  no  reply. 
Lawyers  Goodhart  and  Keating  seeing  he 
hesitated  took  him  aside  and  whispered.  It 
was  the  order  of  the  day  to  take  the  judge 
aside  and  whisper  to  him,  and  when  I  objected 
his  "Honor"  replied:  "You  might  have  the 
right  to  object  in  a  court  of  law,  but  not  here." 
The  whispered  conversation  produced  the  de- 
sired effect  for  when  he  returned  to  his  seat  he 
was  obdurate.  He  would  not  listen  to  an  ad- 
journment of  even  one  day.  And  with  the 
fraudulent  certified  copy  of  the  court  records 
(held  high  above  his  head)  in  which  the  word 
"felony"  had  been  substituted  for  the  word 
"misdemeanor;"  and  the  word  "convicted" 
substituted  for  the  word  "indicted;"  and  the 
word  "sentenced"  substituted  for  the  word 
"dismissed;"  he,  the  so-called  "Honorable" 
John  N.  Bogart,  who  had  given  himself  and 
the  others  an  adjournment  of  three  days  and 
had  peremptorily  refused  to  grant  me  an  ad- 
journment of  even  one  day,  ruled  as  follows 
(copied  from  the  official  minutes)  : 
By  the  License  Commissioner: — 
"I  am  going  to  save  a  lot  of  time.  I  accept 
this  document  as  being  a  true  statement  that 
Jared  Flagg  was  convicted  of  keeping  a  dis-^ 
orderly  house  and  fined  and  imprisoned.  I  am 
going  to  rule  that  anyone  convicted  of  keeping 
a  disorderly  house  is  not  entitled  to  an  agency 
license."  Then  turning  to  me  he  said,  "Your 
application  for  a  renewal  of  your  license  i« 
denied." 


-  '  Ml 

This  settled  it,  and  they  hurried  from  the 
room.  All  left  with  the  exception  of  the 
policeman  and  myself.  I  didn't  move.  I  was 
nonplused.  Was  it  true?  Could  it  be  true? 
But  true  or  false  my  life  had  been  blasted. 
This  much  at  that  time  I  knew.  Now  in  the 
eyes  of  the  public  I  was  a  felon;  I  was  no 
longer  a  citizen  of  the  United  States ;  no  longer 
had  the  right  to  vote;  could  no  longer  hold 
my  head  erect  and  look  decent  people  in 
the  face;  mortified,  chagrined,  humiliated, 
my  name  vilified,  my  reputation  gone,  my 
business  ruined.  Legally  branded  an  out- 
cast. Ostracised,  banished  and  subjected  to 
the  ridicule,  scorn  and  hatred  of  my  fellow 
citizens;  the  convicted  keeper  of  a  baudy 
house,  a  disgrace  to  my  family,  to  the  com- 
munity and  to  myself.  This  would  be  the 
verdict  of  the  people.  It  would  be  impossible 
for  them  to  reach  any  other  decision,  and  de- 
spite anything  I  could  say  or  do  thousands 
would  condemn  me;  would  believe  the  forged 
document  to  be  true;  thousands  would  read 
the  newspapers,  and  every  paper  in  the  city — 
English,  French,  Italian,  Spanish  and  Hebrew 
would  and  did  proclaim  it  as  true  broadcast 
to  the  world. 


142 


CHAPTER  9 

After  they  had  taken  advantage  of  my  in- 
experience I  retained  a  lawyer  and  it  did  not 
take  him  long  to  discover  a  forgery  had  been 
committed. 

Suits  were  brought  against  Edward  R.  Car- 
roll. Chief  Clerk  of  the  Court  of  General 
Sessions,  and  also  against  his  assistant,  William 
Hanna,  Four  in  all,  twenty-five  thousand 
dollars  each,  two  for  damages  and  two  for 
libel  per  se — all  of  which  is  a  matter  of  public 
record. 

The  Commissioner  after  illegally  depriving 
me  of  my  license  probably  thought  that  would 
be  the  last  he  would  hear  of  the  matter.      But 
when  it  was  made  clear  to  me  that  the  docu- 
ment was  a  certified  forgery  I  called  and  asked 
him  to  annul  his  decision.      He  refused,  where- 
upon my  lawyer  appealed  to  the  Corporation 
Counsel.      It  is  this  official's  duty  among  other 
things    to    defend    the   License    Commissioner. 
My  particular  matter  was  placed  in  charge  of 
Assistant  Corporation  Counsel  Charles  O'Neill 
and  after  investigating  he  advised  Mr.  Bogart 
to   retract.      But   as    no    retraction   was    forth- 
coming  my   attorney   carried   the   case   to   the 
Appellate    Division    of    the    Supreme    Court. 
This  move  made  Mr.   Bogart  sit  up  and  take 
notice.      Under  the  law  if  he  allowed  my  case 
to  reach  this  court  his  rulings  would  have  to  be 
reviewed  by  the  Appellate  Judges  and  what 
would  they  have  to  say  about  the  forged  certif- 
icate and  the  perjured  testimony? 


143 

If  any  one  knew,  Bogart  knew  that  in  the 
Appellate  Court  they  "did  things  differently" 
— differently  from  the  manner  in  which  he 
"did  things."  It  was  he  who  so  informed  us. 
His  exact  words  copied  from  the  minutes 
read:  "You  might  have  that  right  in  a  court 
of  law  but  we  do  things  differently  here."  By 
"we"  he  meant  himself  and  by  "here"  he 
meant  the  License  Bureau.  And  now  my  case 
was  going  to  a  different  tribunal  and  Bogart, 
judging  from  his  frantic  efforts,  was  more  than 
anxious  to  have  it  taken  off  this  calendar  and 
brought  back  to  him  where  it  could  and  would 
be  dealt  with  "differently."  He  knew  if  the 
case  should  be  reviewed  by  this  high  court  it 
would  go  hard  with  him  whereas  he  wanted  it 
to  go  hard  with  me.  And  in  order  that  it  might 
go  hard  with  me  and  that  I  might  be  placed  at 
his  mercy,  and  that  his  crooked  acts  might  not 
be  passed  upon  by  the  Appellate  Judges,  ha 
finally  accepted  the  advice  of  Assistant  Cor- 
poration Counsel,  O'Neil  and  ov/ned  up  to  the 
truth  and  sent  me  a  letter  of  which  the  follow- 
ing is  a  copy: — 

"New  York,   July    7,    1906. 
Mr.  Jared  Flagg: 

Sir — I  hereby  notify  you  that  the  deter- 
mination reached  by  me  on  May  2,  1906, 
■whereby  your  application  for  a  license  to 
keep  a  theatrical  agency  wat  denied  has  been 
annulled  by  me  on  the  ground  that  it  ap- 
pears the  record  of  the  Court  of  General 
Sessions  offered  in  evidence  relative  to  your 
trial  in  that  court  was  erroneously  certified 
by  the  clerk  thereof. 

You  are  hereby  notified  that  a  hearing 
upon  your  application  will  be  held  on  the 
23d  day  of  July,  1906,  at  2:30  P.  M.,  at  this 
office. 

Respectfully  yours, 
(Signed)    John   N.   Bogart, 

Commissioner   of  Licenses. 

At  first  he  had  refused  but  he  was  "annul- 
ling" all  right  now. 


144 

"Erroneously"  means  falsely,  and  in  making 
his  confession  he  should  have  used  the  word 
falsely  but  he  liked  the  sound  of  the  other 
better. 

This  solitary,  false  document,  although  not 
even  remotely  related  to  my  theatrical  business 
•W21S  the  only  evidence  used  against  me.  This 
is  the  point  I  want  to  make  clear.  No  witness, 
no  client,  no  person  in  any  way  connected 
with  my  agency  or  the  theatrical  profession 
appeared  before  the  License  Commissioner  to 
testify  against  me.  And  it  was  solely  on  this 
one  false  document,  which  had  nothing  to  do 
with  the  theatrical  business,  which  referred  only 
to  my  "flat"  trial  of  years  ago,  1  896,  that  my 
application  made  ten  years  later,  1  906,  for  a 
theatrical  agent's  license  was  denied.  There- 
fore, the  fact  that  Commissioner  Bogart  now, 
in  w^riting,  over  his  own  signature,  admits  the 
document  was  "erroneously  certified"  is  equiv- 
alent to  admitting  that  I  lost  my  business,  its 
good  will,  my  good  name,  the  esteem  of  my 
customers,  the  confidence  of  their  parents,  the 
respect  of  the  community  and  all  else  on  a 
false  document.  Perjury — forgery — certified 
lies. 

Up  to  that  time  the  going  had  been  toler- 
ably smooth  and  had  1  when  first  approached 
by  the  police  paid  tribute  to  them  in  the  shape 
of  "blood  money,"  I  should  not  be  talking 
about  "fake  hearings"  and  erroneously  certi- 
fied legal  documents.  There  would  have  been 
no  scurrilous  newspaper  articles.  I  would  have 
occupied  a  position  above  reproach.  1  would 
have  been  rich.  Even  had  I  given  the  police 
every  dollar  of  the  profits  accruing  from  my 
flats  the  advance  in  New  York  real  estate  has 
been  so  great  that  had  I  been  able  to  hold 
mine  it  would  in  itself  have  made  me  finan- 


cially  independent.  At  a  low  estimate .  this 
advance  in  value  has  exceeded  a  million  dol- 
lars. 

If  money  covers  a  multitude  of  sins,  consider- 
ing I  am  not  half  as  bad  as  I  have  been  painted, 
do  you  not  suppose  with  such  a  fortune  I  could 
have  covered  all  my  sins?  I  would  have  been 
regarded  a  paragon  of  propriety.  Whereas 
now  I  doubt  if  I  would  be  considered  eligible 
even  to  the  "Four  Hundred." 

This  is  what  a  man  sometimes  gets  for  stand- 
ing on  principle;  but  I  did  it,  and  a  volley  of 
unprintable  oaths  and  the  clinched  fist  of  a 
police  captain  shaken  in  front  of  my  nose  could 
not  make  me  swerve.  No  "third  degree,"  no 
threat,  not  even  dire  ruin  could  move  me.  But 
men  have  been  moved  by  threats  less  aggravat- 
ing. New  York  is  full  of  blackmailers;  and 
many  persons,  posing  as  respectable,  have 
yielded  to  their  demands  and  paid  "hush- 
money"  and  sacrificed  self-respect  that  they 
might  retain  the  respect  of  others.  No  person 
can  however,  truthfully  say  I  ever  debauched 
my  honor  for  the  sake  of  social  or  financial 
gain.  And  it  was  because  Mr.  Bogart  knew  I 
was  no  hypocrite  and  had  nothing  to  cover  up 
that  he  did  not  want  the  judges  of  the  Ap- 
pellate Court  to  hear  my  story.  To  prevent 
me  from  telling  it  he  not  only,  as  stated,  owned 
up  to  the  truth  but  in  the  concluding  paragraph 
of  his  confessing  letter  requested  me  to  appear 
before  him  for  a  rehearing.  This  was  not  to 
my  liking.  I  had  had  all  the  hearings  I  wanted 
and  to  restrain  him  from  holding  more  in  my 
case  served  him  with  a  temporary  injunction. 
It  was  at  this  juncture  that  his  Royal  Highness 
did  some  tall  prevaricating.  He  had  ordered 
me  to  come  back  for  a  rehearing  and  I  had 
"clapped"  an  injunction  on  him  which  put  an 
end  to  further  hearings  until  such  time  as  he 


146 

could  have  the  injunction  vacated.      The  un- 
certainty  as   to   whether   it  could   be   vacated 
riled  him  and  although  I  do  not  wish  it  under- 
stood he  so  far  forgot  himself  as  to  raise  his 
right  hand   and   swear  before   Almighty   God 
to  a  lie  I  do  want  it  known  that  he  affixed  his 
signature   to  several   lies.      John  N.   Bogart  is 
not  a  man  to  commit  perjury;  that  would  be 
against  his  principles;   he  knows  the  penalty; 
but  if  caught  in  a  compromising  position  he  will 
not  scruple  to  affix  his  signature  to  a  lie,  as  is 
shown  in  his  Return  (his  defense)   to  the  Writ 
of  Certiorari  I  brought  against  him  and  which 
was  pending  before  the  Appellate  Division  of 
the  Supreme  Court.      In  this  return  which  was 
to  be  read  by  the  Judges  he  said  the  Theatrical 
Agents'  Society,  as  a  Society,  and  the  Woman's 
Municipal  League,   as  a  League,   and  also  the 
Woman's  Rescue  League,  as  a  League,  had  ap- 
peared before  him  as  complainants  against  me. 
His  exact  words  copied  from  the  court  records 
were  as  follows: 

"Lawrence  G.  Goodhart,  21   Park  Row,  ap- 
pears for  the  Woman's  Rescue  League. 

The  Theatrical  Agents*   Society  appears  by 
Frederick  L.  C.  Keating,  of  38  Park  Row. 

The  Woman's  Municipal  League  appears  by 
Miss  Helen  Arthur,  of  277  Broadway.  ' 

On  June  1  3th,  1  906,  he  wrote  the  Judges  of 
the  Appellate  Division  of  the  Supreme  Court 
that  the  Theatrical  Agents'  Society  appeared 
before  him  on  April  28,  1 906.  (The  word 
"appeared"  when  used  in  this  legal  sense  meant 
that  the  Agents'  Society  as  a  body  had  put  in 
an  appearance  against  me.  Mr.  Bogart  knew 
that  was  not  true.  On  April  28th,  1906,  a 
month  and  a  half  before  he  affixed  his  signature 
to  this  false  statement,  when  the  question,  at 
my  first  hearing,  was  asked  Lawyer  Keating 
(and  Bogart  himself  asked  the  question)   "Do 


147 

you  appear  here  for  the  Agents*  Society?" 
Mr.  Keating  repHed:  (and  I  am  quoting  the 
minutes)  "No,  your  Honor,  the  Theatrical 
Agents'  Society  does  not  appear  against  Mr. 
Flagg.  I  am  simply  here  as  a  spectator  and 
to  see  that  Mr.  Flagg  receives  a  square  deal." 

To  this  answer  as  is  shown  by  the  minutes 
Bogart  remarked: — "Mr.  Flagg  seems  com- 
petent to  look  after  his  own  affairs." 

The  very  next  day,  April  29th,  1 906,  in 
response  to  a  letter  from  me  the  Theatrical 
Agents'  Society  notified  Bogart  in  writing  that 
it  had  not  appeared  against  me.  Furthermore, 
I,  personally,  showed  Mr.  Bogart  a  letter  I  still 
hold  signed  by  the  President  of  the  said  society, 
J.  J.  Armstrong,  to  the  effect  that  he  had 
lodged  no  complaint  against  me  and  had  no 
complaint  to  make.  But,  despite  all  this,  a 
month  and  a  half  later,  June  1  3th,  1  906,  over 
his  signature  Mr.  Bogart  informed  the  Appel- 
late Judges  that  the  Theatrical  Agents'  Society 
appeared  before  him  on  April  28th,  1906, 
represented  by  Lawyer  Keating.  He  would 
not  swear  to  it:  Bogart  would  not  commit  per- 
jury; that  would  be  against  his  principles;  he 
knows  the  penalty;  but  he  would  and  did  affix 
his  signature  to  this  lie. 

When  in  the  so-called  Return  to  the  same 
Writ  he  informed  the  Judges  that  the  Woman's 
Municipal  League  had  appeared  before  him 
represented  by  Miss  Helen  Arthur  he  knew  this 
was  not  so.  He  had  asked  Miss  Arthur  as  a 
special  favor  to  him  to  be  present  "with  or 
without  a  complaint,"  and  simply  to  accom- 
modate him  she  was  present  without  a  com- 
plaint. When  Mr.  Bogart  asked  if  her  League 
had  any  charges  to  make  against  me  she  re- 
plied (and  I  am  quoting  the  minutes)  "We 
have  no  complaint."  Later  she  not  only  put 
this  in  writing  (that  she  had  no  complaint)  but 


148 

requested  the  Commissioner  to  grant  me  a 
license.  I,  furthermore,  showed  Mr.  Bogart  a 
letter  which  I  hold  signed  by  the  Woman's 
Municipal  League  to  this  same  effect.  And 
yet  despite  all  this  proof  he  notified  the  Appel- 
late Judges  a  month  and  a  half  thereafter,  June 
1  3,  I  906,  that  the  Woman's  Municipal  League 
had  appeared  before  him  at  my  first  hearing, 
April  28th,  1 906,  and  was  represented  by 
Miss  Helen  Arthur.  He  would  not  swear  to  it; 
Bogart  would  not  commit  perjury:  that  would 
be  against  his  principles;  he  knows  the  penalty; 
but  he  would  and  did  affix  his  signature  to  this 
lie. 

Also  when  he  made  the  statement  in  the 
same  Return  to  the  same  Writ  and  to  the  same 
judges  that  the  Woman's  Rescue  League  had 
appeared  and  was  represented  by  Lawrence  G. 
Goodhart  he  knew  it  was  false,  and  1  will  ex- 
plain why  he  knew  it.  When  my  lawyer  was 
cross-questioning  Charlotte  Smith  regarding  her 
fake  "League"  and  she  was  becoming  en- 
tangled and  her  lawyer  was  objecting  he, 
Bogart,  made  the  following  remark  to  my  law- 
yer (copied  from  the  minutes)  "You  might 
have  that  right  in  a  court  of  law,  but  we  do 
things  differently  here,  and  I  shall  not  allow  any 
questions  regarding  this  League"  (meaning  the 
fake  "Woman's  Rescue  League")  "because  ac- 
cording to  the  statement  of  the  attorney  who 
represents  this  witness"  (meaning  Charlotte 
Smith)  "no  such  League  appears  here  or  is 
represented  before  me."  Thfs  as  per  the 
official  minutes  is  what  he  said.  "No  such 
League  appears  here  or  is  represented  before 
me."  But,  as  per  the  official  Court  Records, 
he  wrote  the  Appellate  Judges  that  such  a 
League  had  appeared  before  him  at  my  first 
hearing,  April  28th,  1  906  ,and  was  represented 
by  Lawyer  Goodhart.      He  wouldn't  swear  to 


149 

it;  Bogart  wouldn't  commit  perjury;  that 
would  be  against  his  principles;  he  knows  the 
penalty;  but  he  would  and  did  a£Fix  his 
signature  to  this  lie. 

He  prepared,  signed  and  filed  these  and 
other  false  statements  so  in  case  he  had  to 
appear  before  the  Appellate  Judges  he  seem- 
ingly would  have  some  ground  for  his  defense 
to  my  writ.  But  in  the  meantime  he  put  forth 
every  effort  to  have  the  injunction  vacated. 
After  many  delays  and  a  bitter  legal  fight. 
Justice  V.  Dowling  ordered  it  vacated;  so  after 
all  I  was  obliged  to  appear  again  before  his 
"Honor,"  the  License  Commissioner. 

Every  time  I  think  of  these  return-hearings 
I  experience  a  touch  of  sea-sickness.  Talk, 
talk,  talk,  quibbling  all  the  time,  first  one  law- 
yer and  then  another,  over  matters  wholly 
irrelevant  and  making  no  progress. 

To  appeal  a  case  the  testimony  for  and 
against  the  defendant  must  be  printed  and 
bound  at  the  defendant* s  expense  before  it  can 
be  submitted  to  the  higher  court.  In  this  case 
I  was  the  defendant  and  in  the  event  of  an 
appeal  each  word  would  cost  me  just  so  much 
money  to  print.  Therefore,  to  check  this  flow 
of  expensive  words  at  my  subsequent  hearings 
I  determined  to  eliminate  Lawyers  Keating  and 
Goodhart;  and  with  this  end  in  view  notified 
them  that  if  they  took  further  part,  ever  again, 
at  my  hearings  before  the  Commissioner  I 
would  bring  them  up  before  the  Lawyers 
Grievance  Committee  and  give  them  an  op- 
portunity to  show  cause  why  they  should  not 
be  disbarred  as  co-conspirators  in  the  plot  to 
deprive  me  of  my  license.  This  notification 
which  was  duly  drawn  up  after  I  had  had  a 
talk  with  Assistant  District  Attorney  Marshall 
must  have  frightened  the  life  out  of  these  two 
"legal  lights,"  for  they  dropped  Bogart  like  a 
"hot  potato." 


150 

Tell  a  lawyer  engaged  in  a  crooked  case  to 
quit  or  you  will  move  to  have  him  disbarred 
and  he  will  quit  every  time — quit  in  a  hurry. 
But  with  the  "Honorable"  John  N.  Bogart  it 
was  different.  He  could  not  quit.  The  con- 
spirators (certain  agents  and  others  previously 
named)  had  influence  with  certain  political 
bosses  and  Bogart  may  have  received  orders 
from  someone  higher  up,  possibly  a  "Tammany 
ward  heeler;"  and  his  salary,  one  hundred 
dollars  a  week,  may  have  been  at  stake;  so  he 
had  to  keep  the  hearings  going  and  at  the  pro- 
gress he  was  making  it  would  have  taken  him  a 
year  or  more  to  complete  the  job.  It  was  lot, 
he  said,  so  much  a  question  of  virtue  at  the 
present  time.  He  admitted  I  might  now  be  a 
moral  man,  but  the  question  he  wished  to  de- 
termine even  if  it  took  a  year  was,  had  I  always 
lived  a  moral  life?  In  his  opinion  any  man 
who  at  any  period  had  been  guilty  of  "sowing 
wild  oats"  was  not  a  fit  person  to  be  a  theatric- 
al agent.  You  have  no  idea,  unless  you  have 
been  one  yourself,  what  an  exemplary  lot  they, 
the  theatrical  agents  of  this  city,  are.  And  so 
the  make-believe  hearings  dragged  on  month 
after  month;  and  the  money  I  had  saved  was 
melting  as  money  melts  when  everything  is 
going  out  and  nothing  coming  in.  It  was  when 
things  were  in  this  precarious  condition  that  I 
ran  up  against  a  snag,  the  worst  I  had  struck, 
a  letter  written  by  my  brother  Ernest  and  which 
reads  as  follows: 

"If  I  were  you  I  would  waste  no  more 
time  or  money  in  trying  to  procure  a  license. 
It  is  not  worth  it,  and  I  wish  you  would  cut 
loose  from  this  whole  unsavory  mess  and 
turn  your  attention  to  something  worthy  of 
you  and  your  bringing  up.  I  am  sure  if 
you  look  you  will  find  a  profitable  opening. 
You  may  think  your  record  a   handicap,  but 


I5( 

I  doubt  if  it  will  prove  as  much  of  a  one  as 
you  imagine.  If  you  will  take  my  advice  I 
will  show  my  confidence  by  not  limiting  you 
in  timie  or  amount.  When  you  want  money 
ask  for  it  and  1  will  send  it  to  you." 

Before  I  had  half  finished  reading  this  letter 
my  arms  dropped.  Here  was  where  I  could 
not  fight.  I  knew  he  did  not  realize  what  he 
was  asking  me  to  do,  but  that  did  not  help 
matters.  He  was  my  brother,  and  it  is  differ- 
ent when  it  is  your  brother. 

Without  a  quibble,  an  explanation,  or  an 
interview,  just  as  if  it  were  a  matter  of  small 
moment,  just  as  if  it  were  easy  to  disregard  the 
verdict  of  those  who  had  formerly  respected 
me,  I  requested  m.y  lawyer  to  notify  the 
Commissioner  that  I  would  withdraw  my  ap- 
plication for  a  license.  In  reply  to  this  noti- 
fication we  received  a  letter  of  which  the 
following  is  a  copy: 

"New  York,   February   6,    1907. 
H.  D.   Mildeberger,  Esq., 

Attorney-at-Law^. 
Dear   Sir — Your   communication,   as  attorney 
for  Jared  Flagg,  notifying  me  that  he  wished 
to    withdraw    his    application    for    a    license 
has  been  received,  accepted  and  filed. 
Yours  truly, 
(Signed)    John   N.   Bogart, 
Commissioner    of    Licenses." 

The  day  this  letter  was  received  it  was  for- 
warded to  my  brother,  and  the  following  day 
he  wrote  me,  "I  am  sure  you  have  made  a  wise 
decision." 

Engrossed  in  vast  enterprises — the  design- 
ing of  the  Annapolis  Naval  Academy,  St. 
Luke's  Hospital  and  the  Singer  Building  in 
New  York  and  other  great  buildings — involv- 
ing millions  of  dollars  and  the  employment 
of  thousands  of  men,  my  brother  had  had  no 
time  to  look  into  my  affairs.  He  only  knew 
I  had  been  dealing  with  theatrical  people,  and 


152 

had  not  made  a  fortune.  And  on  general 
principles,  without  being  familiar  with  the 
thousand  and  one  circumstances  surrounding 
the  Ccise,  he  had,  out  of  the  kindness  of  his 
heart,  written  the  aforementioned  letter.  Had 
it  come  from  another  I  would  have  thanked 
that  other  for  his  advice  and  offer,  but  would 
have  declined  both. 

Assistant  District  Attorney  Marshall  and 
every  one  cognizant  of  the  truth  said  my 
license  was  being  withheld  from  me  illegally; 
and  I  was  terribly  anxious  that  this  fact  should 
be  known.  If  I  only  could  have  advertised 
that  it  was  once  more  hanging  in  the  same 
old  frame  over  my  desk  that  was  all  I  wanted 
— my  name. 

The  eyes  of  the  profession  were  upon  me. 
Remember  I  was  known,  known  clear  across 
the  continent,  wherever  musical  comedies  were 
booked.  Thousands  were  waiting  and  wonder- 
ing whether  I  would  win  or  lose.  The  with- 
holding or  the  granting  of  that  little  piece  of 
printed  paper,  to  me,  meant  everything.  It 
could  give  to  or  it  could  take  from  me  that 
which  money  could  not  buy.  In  the  estimation 
of  all  these  people — thousands  of  people — it 
meant  one  thing  or  the  other,  an  upright  man  or 
a  degenerate.  What  then  would  be  the  infer- 
ence now  that  I  had  allowed  the  matter  to  go  by 
default?  What  reason  would  the  editors  of 
the  newspapers  assign? 

Aside  from  the  operatic  managers  and 
theatrical  agents  and  general  public  I  had  a 
clientele  of  over  seven  thousand,  and  the  man 
does  not  live  who  can  afford  to  ignore  the 
opinion  of  seven  thousand  of  his  fellow  beings. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  man  does  not  live  who 
can  afford  to  tell  his  brother  to  "go  to  the 
devil!"  If  I  had  ignored  my  brother's  letter, 
what  would  have  been  the  result?      It  is  true 


153 

I  could  have  explained  matters;  and  had  I 
done  so  he  would,  without  waiting  to  hear 
details,  have  said,  "If  that  is  how  you  feel, 
why,  of  course,  fight  the  thing  to  a  finish."  I 
am  well  enough  acquainted  with  him  to  know 
that  that  is  just  what  he  would  have  said;  but 
— there  would  have  been  a  but.  He  advised, 
I  refused;  he  listened,  I  explained;  and  it  was 
all  right — but  (here  is  where  the  but  comes  in) 
tuas  it  all  right?  There  would  have  been  that 
feeling — the  feeling  of  estrangement — that 
time,  years  of  time  alone  can  obliterate.  I 
didn't  want  any  of  it;  and  with  the  full  know- 
ledge that  I  should  be  misrepresented  by  the 
press  (and  I  was),  and  misjudged  by  my 
clients  (and  I  was)  I,  nevertheless,  abandoned 
and  relinquished  all  hope  of  ever  again  be- 
coming a  theatrical  agent. 

"Blood  is  thicker  than  water,"  and  between 
the  multitude  and  the  one,  I  decided. 


JARLD  FLAGG 

1920 


1»» 


PART  II 
CHAPTER  10 


Thirty  years  ago— Winter — it  was  cold, 
biting  cold,  ears  were  tingling  and  overcoats 
were  buttoned  tightly.  It  was  early  evening. 
Lights  were  beginning  to  flicker  in  store  win- 
dows when  from  out  the  crowded  thorough- 
fare, lower  Broadway,  a  young  man  turned 
into  Ann  Street  and  walked  as  a  man  walks 
when  he  knows  where  he  is  going  and  is  in  n 
hurry.  His  hands  were  jammed  deep  into  his 
coat  pockets;  and  if  any  one  could  have  looked 
inside  one  of  these  pockets  he  would  have 
seen  a  roll  of  paper  and  a  hand  clutching  it 
tightly.  It  was  not  because  he  thought  any 
person  intended  to  grab  the  paper  but  he  did 
not  want  to  lose  it.  It  meant  something  to 
him,  it  represented  years  of  study.  It  wat 
manuscript,  and  it  was  I — Jared  Flagg —  with 
my  manuscript  who  turned  the  corner  that 
Winter  evening,  long  ago,  on  my  way  to  the 
old-time  publishing  house  of  Dick  and  Fitzger- 
ald,  I  8  Ann  Street,  New  York  City. 

Later  that  year  a  book  was  published  en- 
titled, "How  to  take  money  out  of  Wall 
Street." 

Now  we  will  go  back  a  few  more  years. 

At  the  age  of  fourteen  when  living  in  my 
native  town.  New  Haven,  Connecticut,  my 
step-mother  asked  me  if  I  wished  to  continue 
at  the  Hopkins  Grammar  School  preparatory 
to  entering  Yale  College  or  if  I  preferred  to 


156 

go  to  Wall  Street  and  someday  become  a 
speculator.  I  had  heard  of  Wall  Street  and 
longed  to  know  more  about  it.  1  had  also 
heard  of  the  Greek  language  and  longed  to 
know  less  about  it;  so,  without  giving  the  sub- 
ject consideration,  1  selected  Wall  Street. 

Mrs.  Work,  wife  of  the  late  multi-millionaire 
Wall  Street  operator,  Frank  Work,  was  to 
make  us  a  visit  and  it  was  arranged  that  when 
Mrs.  Work  should  return  to  her  home  in  the 
great  city  of  New  York  she  was  to  take  me 
with  her.  This  was  forty-seven  years  ago  and 
I  arrived  on  Wall  Street  the  day  of  the  "Black 
Friday"  gold  panic  of  1869.  Never  before 
had  I  seen  men  rushing  about  in  such  creizy 
fashion.  At  the  time  I  did  not  know  a  panic 
was  raging — I  though  it  an  every  day  occur- 
ence— and  was  not  favorably  impressed,  in 
fact,  was  depressed  and  remember  and  will 
always  remember  that  day.  Everything 
seemed  so  strange,  a  lonely  solitary  feeling 
came  over  me  as  I  stood  in  the  corner  out  of 
the  way  in  Mr.  Work's  office.  I  thought  of 
our  peaceful  home  in  the  country,  the  old  barn, 
the  horses,  and  the  small  donkey  my  brother 
and  I  owned.  I  thought  of  Evergreen  Cemetery 
— my  Mother — I  mean  my  real  Mother — and 
my  eyes  became  dim. 

But  another  day,  another  year,  came  and 
without  realizing  it  I  was  beginning  to  acquire 
an  insight  into  the  intricacies  of  speculation.  I 
was  with  Mr.  Work  five  years.  It  was  the  first 
and  only  clerical  position  I  have  ever  filled. 

Now  we  will  move  forward  several  years. 
In  my  book,  "How  to  take  money  out  of  Wall 
Street,"  I  had  outlined  a  method  of  operating. 
And  after  reading  in  1907,  the  words  I  had 
written  in  1887,  it  occured  to  me  it  might  be 
well  to  raise  a  million  or  two  to  operate  the 
system. 


157 

A  man  can  usually  accomplish  all  he  thinks 
he  can,  provided: 

First,  that  he  is  intelligent  enough  to  see  he 
cannot  accomplish  it  all  by  his  individual  effort 
— that  he  must  have  the  concurrent  effort  of 
others  and  receive  a  percentage  of  the  profits 
accruing  from  the  labor  of  others — that  the 
smaller  the  percentage — he  exacts — the  larger 
will  be  his  profit,  because  these  others — to  do 
the  real  work — must  have  a  real  incentive  to 
keep  at  work. 

Second,  that  he  has  consideration.  Many 
men  are  so  indifferent  as  to  the  rights  of  others 
they  are  always  looking  for  the  best  of  it. 
This  is  why  they  usually  get  the  worst  of  it. 

Third,  that  he  has  patience.  Many  men  are 
so  impatient  they  strangle  every  opportunity 
that  comes  their  way  by  insisting  upon  seeing 
some  money  each  week.  This  is  why  they 
never  see  much. 

Fourth,  that  he  has  dignity.  Many  men  are 
so  lacking  in  self-respect  they  will  not  hesitate 
to  place  themselves  under  obligations  to  other 
men.  A  man  who  will  accept  something  for 
nothing  amounts  to  nothing.  He  is  a  menial 
at  heart  and  would,  if  in  a  different  walk  of 
life,  accept  a  tip. 

Insist  upon  paying  for  everything,  especially 
favors — it  is  cheaper. 

Twice  in  my  life,  when  unable  to  pay,  I  was 
forced  into  bankruptcy,  but  each  time,  "came 
back"  and  settled  in  full  although,  as  the  Court 
records  show,  was  legally  relieved  from  so 
doing.  The  most  important  (the  most  pro- 
ductive) bills  to  pay  are  those  you  are  not 
legally  obligated  to  pay.  I  have  always  held 
that  a  debt  could  not  be  out-lawed,  could  not 
be  cancelled  until  liquidated,  and  it  is  because 
I  have  lived  up  to  this  doctrine  that  I  have 
credit  without  limit. 


158 

At  this  period,  1907,  when  I  decided  to  re- 
turn to  Wall  Street,  my  office  was  my  bed- 
room; but  this  did  not  deter  me  from  inviting 
a  few  friends  around  to  pass  an  evening.  1 
told  them  I  wanted  to  explain  how,  with 
money,  money  could  be  made  by  systematically 
taking  advantage  of  the  up  and  down  swings 
of  the  market. 

Whenever  a  person  undertakes  to  exploit  an 
idea  not  universally  understood  people  doubt; 
they  look  wise  and  poke  fun  at  him.  It  has 
been  so  since  time  immemorial. 

A  system  of  speculating  that  will  enable  the 
operator  to  make  as  much  in  a  declining 
market  as  in  an  advancing  one,  is  not  a  system 
universally  understood,  and  my  friends  at  first 
were  not  inclined  to  take  me  seriously.  They 
thought  it  too  good  to  be  true;  but  when  they 
realized  it  was  a  matter  of  statistics — not  words 
-^they  agreed  to  back  me,  to  contribute  their 
influence,  time  and  money  to  aid  me  in  estab- 
lishing a  brokerage  firm  of  which  I  was  to  be 
the  head  and  they  (the  ten)  my  special  part- 
ners. 

A  few  weeks  later,  January,  1 908,  the 
house  of  Jared  Flagg  &  Company  was  founded. 

It  soon  became  apparent  that  my  partners 
were  not  elated  over  our  environments.  The 
entrance  was  faulty,  the  interior  worse  and  my 
advice  not  to  be  in  a  hurry,  to  keep  expense* 
down,  transform  my  bed  into  a  couch,  utilize 
the  room  as  an  office,  and  when  necessary 
lease  an  adjoining  room  did  not  impress  them 
favorably,  and  I  was  out-voted  ten  to  one. 
Class  w^as  what  they  wanted,  "a  classy  office  in 
a  classy  building,"  and  we  got  it.  We  want 
what  we  have  not  got  until  we  get  it.  Then 
we  want  to  get  rid  of  it — usually.  Yet,  the 
"Century  Building,"  1  West  34th  Street,  with 
its    marble     front    looked    inviting    and     the 


159 

entrance  was  faultless.  To  look  prosperous,  to 
look  like  business,  was  essential  to  success — 
they  said.  So  we  had  letter  files,  telephones, 
tickers,  private  wires,  everything — everything 
but  business.  Business  would  come  later — ^we 
thought.  The  next  best  thing  to  making 
money  is  to  think  you  are  going  to. 

One  morning,  six  weeks  later,  after  we  had 
quit  thinking  about  our  prospects.  I  walked 
into  the  office  wearing  a  high  silk  hat  such  as 
unsuccessful  financiers  are  wont  to  wear  and 
noticed  something  about  the  atmospheric  con- 
dition of  the  place  that  did  not  strike  my 
fancy.  I  inquired  what  was  up.  "Have  you 
seen  the  Herald?" 

Every  one  had  a  Herald — page  five — col- 
umn one — ridicule — nothing  but  ridicule. 

''Jared  Flagg  now  in  high  finance,"  and  et 
cetera. 

Newspaper  ridicule  effects  persons  diflFerent- 
ly,  adding  to  or  extinguishing  the  flames  of 
ambition.  I  am  accustomed  to  it,  but  my 
partners  after  reading  this  blast  acted  as  if  a 
chemical  fire  extinguisher  had  been  turned  on 
them.  I  tried  to  resuscitate  them  but  they  had 
had  enough.  The  rent  would  be  due  in  a 
few  days  and  they  had  had  enough.  So,  to 
make  a  short  story  shorter  the  firm  of  Jared 
Flagg  and  Company  was  by  mutual  consent 
dissolved. 

I  admire  beautiful  environments  but  abomi- 
nate pretense.  A  person  who  professes  to  be 
more  prosperous  than  he  is  in  reality  may 
succeed  in  duping  himself  but  he  is  the  only 
one  deceived. 

There  was  no  pretense  about  my  old  ten 
dollar  per  month  combination  office  and  bed- 
room and  I  was  once  more  in  it.  Come  one, 
come  all,  I  was  now  ready.  The  reporters 
came  but  their  articles  produced  no  more  effect 


160  , 

on  my  customers  (and  I  had  a  few'i  than  water 
on  a  duck's  back.  One  customer  brought  an- 
other and  before  the  end  of  the  first  year, 
1  908,  all  seven  rooms  on  the  top  floor  of  76 
Fifth  Avenue  were  occupied  by  my  clerks. 

Occasionally  one  of  my  former  "classy" 
partners  would  drop  in  and  take  a  look.  If 
he  wanted  a  job  he  could  have  one.  Those 
who  did  not  accept  executive  positions  opened 
speculative  accounts. 

In  the  conduct  of  my  business  I  made  it  a 
rule  to  give  no  references,  that  is,  refrained 
from  referring  anyone  to  my  friends.  If  a 
prospective  customer  insisted  upon  knowing  a 
little  something  about  me  I  would  send  him  to 
Police  Headquarters.  Why  such  customers 
after  calling  at  300  Mulberry  Street  returned 
and  handed  money  to  my  cashier  is  a  mystery. 

It  may  be  that  there  are  more  upright  men 
on  the  force  than  I  had  imagined.  However, 
one  man  told  me  he  would  not  believe  a  police 
officer  under  oath.  If  he  spoke  well  or  other- 
wise of  me  it  would  not  affect  him.  He 
wanted  bank  references,  $5,000  was  $5,000 
and  it  was  his  custom  before  transacting  busi- 
ness to  receive  satisfactory  bank  references. 

"Are  you  not  aware,"  I  inquired,"  that  the 
worst  persons  frequently  give  the  best  refer- 
ences— that  it  is  part  of  their  profession  to 
have  such  on  tap?" 

No,  he  did  not  know  it  or  believe  it.  A 
week  or  two  later  I  sent  this  "business  man"  a 
letter  of  introduction  to  the  President  of  the 
Elast  River  National  Bank — a  bank  in  which  I 
still  have  and  have  had  an  account  since 
February  14th,  1901.  Two  days  later  he 
called  and  offered  me  five  thousand  dollars 
which  I  told  him  to  put  back  in  his  pocket 

"Before  accepting  that  money"  I  said,  "Let 
me  tell   you  why   the   President   of   the   bank 


161 

spoke  in  such  high  terms  of  me.  After  our 
talk  the  other  day  I  withdrew  from  the  Union 
Trust  Company  forty  thousand  dollars  on 
which  I  was  receiving  two  per  cent,  interest 
and  deposited  it  in  the  East  River  Bank  with- 
out interest.  I  then  turned  in  my  passbook  to 
be  balanced.  In  a  few  days  I  called  for  it 
and  saw  that  the  balance  had  been  brought 
down  and  footed  in  red  ink.  In  years  gone 
by  my  balance  in  this  bank  had  not  exceeded 
two  dollars.  I  had  kept  the  account  alive  by 
not  drawing  the  last  penny.  The  President 
did  not  know  me  and  did  not  care  to  know 
me,  but  you  demanded  bank  references  so  I 
introduced  myself.  He  inquired  my  business 
— his  manner  seemed  abrupt  but  I  was  pre- 
pared for  such  a  reception — I  had  my  pass- 
book. I  told  him  I  was  a  depositor  and 
handed  him  my  book  which  he  opened  in  a 
dilatory  way  until  his  eye  caught  sight  of  the 
balance — forty-one  thousand  seven  hundred 
dollars.  I  was  offered  a  chair — a  comfortable 
one — I  told  him  I  had  never  overdrawn,  had 
never  asked  to  have  my  paper  discounted  and 
desired  no  accommodation  now.  I  merely 
wanted  him  to  know  I  was  conducting  a  stock 
brokerage  business.  "Is  that  so,"  he  said. 
"Yes,"  said  I,  "and  occasionally  some  business 
man  comes  along  who  wants  bank  references; 
and  while  I  may  never  trouble  you,  if  I  should 
send  a  prospective  customer  here,  I  w^ould 
like  you  to  say  that  my  dealings  with  your 
bank  have  always  proved  satisfactory."  "Why, 
certainly,  certainly,  Mr.  Flagg,  send  them 
along,"  he  said.  "And  I  sent  you."  My 
prospective  customer  seemed  to  be  in  a  studious 
mood.  So  I  continued;  "If  you  care  to  in- 
terview a  few  more  presidents  g^ve  me  a  little 
time  and  I  will  fix  up  some  A-1  references  for 
you." 


162 

Instead  of  five  thousand  dollars  that  custom- 
er, Mr.  Edward  McVicker,  put  up  ten  thousand. 

Nobody  loves  a  hypocrite.  Never  be  afraid 
to  pass  out  the  truth. 

In  1  909,  I  received  a  letter  from  the  Union 
Square  Branch  of  the  Com  Exchange  Bank 
requesting  me  to  close  my  account. 

"What  is  the  matter  with  it,"  I  asked,  "i» 
the  balance  too  large?" 

The  manager  could  not  tell.  He  had  re- 
ceived orders  and  must  obey  orders.  I  left 
carrying  a  bundle  containing  sixty-two  thous- 
and in  cash.  Not  wishing  to  linger  in  the 
streets  with  so  valuable  a  package  I  walked 
across  the  Square  to  the  Bank  of  the  Metropolis 
and  told  the  President,  whom  I  had  never 
before  met,  that  I  would  like  to  open  an 
account.  It  may  have  been  that  my  clothes 
needed  pressing  that  led  him  to  remark  while 
scrutinizing  me  that  they  did  not  accept  ac- 
counts carrying  a  balance  of  less  than  five 
hundred  dollars. 

"That  part  will  be  all  right,"  I  said,  "as  1 
rarely  deposit  less  than  fifty  thousand  dollars 
at  a  time." 

"Fifty  thousand — did  you  say  fifty?  And 
what  is  the  name?" 

I  told  him. 

"Flagg — Jared?"  He  had  heard  the  name 
somewhere — he  thought. 

"And  to  whom  can  you  refer  us,  Mr. 
Flagg?" 

"To  your  neighbor  across  the  park,"  I  said; 
"The  Com  Exchange  Bank.  They  have  just 
kicked  my  account  out — it  was  too  good — I 
was  carrying  too  large  a  balance." 

"And  are  you  willing  I  should  telephone 
over?" 

"I  am  referring  you  to  them,"  I  said. 

In  less  than  ten  minutes  the  receiving  teller 


163 

of  the  Bank  of  the  Metropolis  was  at  work 
counting  my  bundle.  And  from  that  day  to 
this  my  business  relations  with  this  Bank  have 
been  cordial. 

Later  in  1 909  the  old  Pond's  Extract  Build- 
ing was  pulled  down  but  it  was  not  until  the 
roof  was  partly  off  that  I  moved  into  new 
quarters — the  Tilden  building — 1  05  West  40tli 
Street. 

In  1910,  the  business  boomed.  To  turn  half 
a  million  dollars'  worth  of  stock  in  a  day  was 
nothing  extraordinary. 

In  1911,  the  business  of  its  own  momentum 
forged  ahead  even  faster.  I  now  had  eighty 
bookkeepers  and  over  seven  hundred  custom- 
ers who  had  made  and  withdrawn  from  me  in 
profits  almost  three  quarters  of  a  million  dol- 
lars; and  there  w^as  no  reason  why  they  could 
not  have  continued  to  make  money  had  not  a 
lawless  gang  of  men,  ''armed  to  the  teeth," 
swooped  down  (September  23  d,  1911)  and 
wrecked  my  office  and  kidnapped  me. 

Because  the  Government,  thinking  these  men 
trustworthy,  had  hired  them  the  newspaper 
reporters  took  it  for  granted  that  it  was,  and 
announced  it  as,  a  governmental  raid,  thereby 
creating  a  false  impression — that  I  was  legally 
raided  by  the  government. 

Why  did  these  men  abduct  me? 

At  the  time,  1911,  I  could  not  answer  this 
question,  nor  could  I  at  my  trial,  three  years 
later.  I  could  surmise  but  could  prove  nothing 
— the  conspirators  would  not  talk.  However, 
now   (1915)   I  can  answer. 

My  answer: — In  1908,  I  was  in  the  stock 
brokerage  business.  Prior  to  1  908,  an  article 
had  appeared  in  the  New  York  World  to  the 
effect  that  I  had  been  adjudged  guilty  of  rent- 
ing flats  to  immoral  persons.  As  I  had  been 
acquitted  of  this  charge  (see  court  records  re- 


>64  ...mm 

f erred  to  in  Part  1 .  Chapter3 )  I  instituted  a 
fifty  thousand  dollar  damage  suit.  This  suit 
dragged  along  until  1911.  It  then  appeared 
on  the  "Calendar"  and  Ralph  Pulitzer  and  the 
other  owners  of  the  New  York  World  to  be 
forever  rid  of  this  suit  bribed — with  money — 
Warren  W.  Dickson,  at  that  time,  191  1 ,  the 
chief  post  office  inspector  of  this  district  to 
kidnap  me  and  proclaim  me  as  one  engaged 
in  a  fraudulent  business. 

Anything  vague  about  the  foregoing  answer? 
Do  you  think  Pulitzer  and  his  puppet,  Dickson, 
understand  my  English?  If  so,  were  it  not  so, 
v/hy  am  I  not  indicted  for  libel? 

Mr.  Dickson  delegated  his  first  deputy  post 
office  inspector,  Elmer  L,  Kincaid,  to  engineer 
the  abduction. 

In  an  affidavit  made  by  Mr.  Kincaid  shortly 
thereafter  he  stated: — 

"The  sources  of  deponent's  information  are 
his  official  investigations  to  disclose  the  details 
of  which  at  this  time  would  be  injurious  to  the 
government's  case." 

That  the  "details"  would  have  been  "injuri- 
ous" to  the  government's  case  had  they  been 
"disclosed"  can  be  seen  by  the  following 
affidavit  not  made  at  that  time,  but  made  four 
years  later,  1915,  at  which  time  Mr.  Kincaid 
having  lost  his  job  as  a  post  office  inspector 
could  afford  to  speak  the  truth. 

"State  of  New  York, 

ss. : 
County  of  New  York, 

Jared  Flagg,  a  resident  of  the  Borough  of 
Manhattan,  New  York  City,  N.  Y.,  with  an 
office  at  105  West  40th  Street,  being  duly 
sworn  deposes  and  says:  March  9th,  19 1 5, 
I  called  at  the  office  (110  West  40th  Street, 
New  York  City)  of  former  Post  Office  In- 
spector E.  L.  Kincaid  and  asked  him  if  he 
could  tell  me  why  the  Government  raided 
me?      He    told    me    I    would    not    have    been 


165 

raided  had  I  not  instituted  a  fifty  thousand 
dollar  libel  suit  against  the  New  York  World. 
He  said:  "This  suit  of  yours  had  been  staved 
off  for  years,  but  a  few  months  before  we 
raided  you  it  appeared  on  the  calendar;  your 
lawyer  was  pressing  it  for  trial.  The  World's 
lawyer,"  Mr.  Kincaid  said,  "called  on  Chief 
Post  Office  Inspector  Warren  W.  Dickson, 
showed  him  the  Court  Journal  in  which  your 
impending  suit  was  recorded  and  told  him 
the  New  York  World  wanted  your  concern 
raided  before  your  suit  was  put  over  on  the 
day  calendar  as  it  might  then  be  too  late  to 
accomplish  their  purpose,  to  be  rid  of  this 
suit."  The  World  to  convince  Chief  Dickson 
I  was  a  hard  character  sent  a  reporter  to  the 
Federal  Building  with  my  old  1894  flat  in- 
dictments. Later,  according  to  Mr.  Kincaid, 
Dickson  notified  the  World's  lawyer, that  as 
no  customer  of  mine  had  ever  complained 
he  could  not  make  a  requisition  upon  the 
Government  at  Washington  for  funds  to  de- 
fray investigating  expenses.  I  would  have 
to  be  investigated  before  the  raid  could  be 
pulled  off,  otherwise  it  might  look  irregular. 
He  said  that  the  World's  lawyer  agreed  to 
stand  the  expense;  Dickson  received  cash  at 
various  times  amounting  in  all  to  about  one 
thousand  dollars  but  he  gave  no  receipts. 
How  much  went  for  expenses  Mr.  Kincaid 
does  not  know,  but  he  received  no  part  of 
the  money — he  says.  Furthermore,  he  says, 
"The  Government  did  not  pay  Mrs.  Rand," 
a  reporter  for  the  'World,'  "but  she  reported 
to  us.  She  furnished  us  with  the  names  of 
your  brokers.  Weeks  before  the  raid  we 
received  orders  from  the  World  to  call  on 
the  Presidents  of  both  Stock  Exchanges  and 
w^arn  them  not  to  permit  their  members  to 
do  business  with  you.  I  called  and  showed 
my  badge.  I  also  called  on  your  brokers 
who  told  me  you  were  conducting  business 
properly."  Mr.  Kincaid  told  me  that  a  few 
days  before  I  was  raided  the  World's  law- 
yer became  more  insistent;  he  pounded  Chief 
Dickson's  desk  with  his  fist  and  gave  him  to 
understand  the  World  would  not  stand  for 
another  day's  delay.  "I  had  no  alternative," 
Mr.  Kincaid  said,  "I  received  my  orders  from 
the  Chief  and   he   expected  to   lead  the    raid. 


166 

but  at  the  last  moment  decided  to  go  out  of 
town  and  place  everything  in  my  charge." 
He  continued:  "You  were  raided  w^ithout 
being  investigated,  but  by  having  you  raided 
the  World  accomplished  its  object.  You  paid 
the  court  fees  and  cancelled  your  fifty  thou- 
sand   damage    suit." 

JARED  FLAGG. 
Subscribed   and   sworn 
to   before    me   this    1 9th 
day  of  April.    1915. 
E.  H.  McCulloch. 
Notary  Public,  New  York 
County,  No.   2690. 
Register  No,   6062," 

Henry  A.  Jackson,  who  was  present  when 
I  had  my  interview  with  Mr.  Kincaid,  signed  a 
similar  affidavit. 

And  thus  endeth  the  mystery! 

Remember,  I  did  not  know  this  at  the  time 
of  my  trial,  but  now  know  had  I  not  commit- 
ted this  "crime" — the  "crime"  of  instituting 
this  libel  suit  against  the  New  York  World — I 
would  not  have  been  kidnapped. 


167 


CHAPTER  II 

To  those  not  having  been  brought  into  close 
touch  with  humanity  this  declaration  made  by 
this  ex-post  office  inspector  may  seem  startling; 
but  to  others,  who  know  something  of  the  frail- 
ties of  human  nature,  something  of  the  tempta- 
tions to  which  men  vested  with  governmental 
power  are  exposed,  it  may  not  seem  so  sur- 
prising. 

It  is  the  desire  of  most  post  office  inspectors 
to  become  great  detectives,  and  most  of  them 
possess  sagacity  sufficient  to  realize  it  is  not 
what  they  do  but  what  the  newspapers  say 
they  do  that  leads  to  promotion.  Apparently, 
their  only  chance  of  making  a  name  is  in  having 
their  names  appear  in  print,  "Zealous,  self- 
sacrificing,  protectors  of  the  people." 

Did  Chief  Inspector  Dickson  surmise  that  to 
lead  with  drawn  revolver  a  spectacular  raid  on 
a  prominent  brokerage  establishment  might 
bring  his  name  before  the  public?  Did  he  en- 
tertain a  lurking  impression  he  might  be  com- 
mended by  the  morning  and  evening  editions 
of  the  World  for  his  shrewdness,  bravery  and 
devotion  to  duty,  if  in  my  case  he  failed  to  do 
his  duty?  And  did  he  apprehend  that  if  in 
my  case  he  stood  out  determined  not  to  betray 
the  confidence  reposed  in  hirh  by  the  people 
the  great  Metropolitan  Journal,  the  World, 
might  level  its  influence  at  him;  might  accuse 
him  of  unfitness — negligence — incompetency? 
Was  this  why  he  deemed  it  wise  in  my  case  to 
violate  his  oath  of  office  and  yield  to  the  de- 
mands of  the  New  York  World's  lawyer?     Or 


168 

was  there  a  reason  more  potent?  Expenses 
were  paid  in  cash  and  no  receipts  given.  Why 
were  checks  not  used  or  receipts  required? 
Someone,  sometime,  may  have  to  answer  this 
question. 

Even  granting  corruption  exists  in  certain 
departments  of  our  Government  many  say  they 
cannot  see  how  a  newspaper  could  by  adopt- 
ing this  roundabout  course  hope  to  escape  the 
consequences  of  a  damage  suit.  It's  unreason- 
able, they  think.  And  yet  fcr  this  very  reason 
— unreasonable  reason — this  course  was  adopt- 
ed. 

To  win  I  knew  (and  they  knew)  I  would 
have  to  show  my  reputation  had  been  injured. 
How  could  I  show  this  if  I  had  no  reputation? 
If  indicted  by  the  Government  my  good  repu- 
tation would  be  gone.  This  is  why  Pulitzer 
wanted  me  indicted.  That  he  felt  his  chances 
of  winning  slim  had  my  suit  been  heard  in  a 
court  of  law  before  I  had  been  indicted  goes 
without  saying.  His  lawyer  undoubtedly  told 
him  he  had  no  case.  Three  times  he  changed 
lawyers.  Was  it  to  find  an  unprincipled  one? 
Some  are  honest.  Not  all  lawyers  are  legal- 
ized blackmailers  and  licensed  thieves — it  is 
said.  Was  it  to  find  one  willing  to  connive  with 
him  to  evade  the  law  that  he  changed  so  often? 
He  knows  but  won't  tell. 

To  mislead  the  people,  to  make  it  appear  he 
was  actuated  by  a  desire  to  serve  the  people 
he,  three  days  after  I  was  convicted,  as  per  the 
World,  November  18th,  1914,  gave  himself 
credit  for  having  instigated  the  raid  which  re- 
sulted (as  he  published)  "in  bringing  Jared 
Flagg  to  justice."  As  a  matter  of  fact  his  only 
desire  was  to  defeat  the  ends  of  justice  by 
preventing  me  from  bringing  him  to  justice. 

Dickson  and  Kincaid  timed  the  abduction 
to  a  nicety.      The  bond  clerk  takes  an  outing 


169 

Saturday  afternoons;  so  to  make  it  impossible 
to  have  bonds  accepted  until  the  following 
Monday  they  kidnapped  me  Saturday.  Why 
did  they  want  to  keep  me  under  lock  and  key 
forty-eight  hours?  I  know,  but  before  the 
reader  can  be  expected  to  understand  their 
motive,  before  he  can  comprehend  the  things 
that  transpired  during  this  interval,  before  he 
can  believe  things  that  seem  unbelievable,  he 
must  have  some  conception  of  the  power  con- 
ferred on  these  officers.  A  post-office  in- 
spector could  with  impunity  commit  almost  any 
crime.  He  could  in  broad  daylight  walk  into 
any  office  "armed  to  the  teeth"  and  with  a 
jimmy  pry  open  any  American  citizen's  cash 
drawer  and  help  himself  to  its  contents.  I 
have  had  this  done  to  me  and  the  money,  one 
hundred  and  forty-two  dollars,  has  never  been 
and  I  do  not  imagine  will  ever  be  returned. 
This  drawer  was  constructed  in  one  of  my 
Herring-Hall  Marvin  safes,  and  it  shows  the 
marks  of  the  jimmy,  the  splintered  wood,  the 
lock  broken  and  partially  pried  off. 

Post-office  inspectors  in  those  days,  w^hen 
armed  with  pistols,  were  not  afraid  to  help 
themselves  to  anything  they  could  lay  hands 
on.  I  was  in  the  Tombs  when  they  cleaned 
out  my  brokerage  office  but  W.  F.  O'Neill, 
superintendant  of  the  building,  has  signed  an 
affidavit  stating  he  saw  them  fill  forty  or  fifty 
United  States  mail  bags  with  my  effects  and 
cart  them  away. 

From  my  stolen  books  they  compiled  a  list 
of  customers  and  turned  them  over  to  a  law 
firm.  I  had  not  been  in  the  Tombs  three 
hours  before  Bovie  &  Wilson,  attorneys-at-law, 
3  Broad  Street,  New  York,  had  a  list  of  the 
names  and  addresses  of  my  customers. 

Saturday  evening,  September  23d4_J91  1,  all 
Sunday  and  t^e  following  Monday  while  I  was 


170 

in  the  Tombs  powerless  to  protect  myself  and 
kept  there  for  this  reason,  this  firm  and  their 
clerks  were  calling  on  my  customers,  urging, 
begging  and  advising  them  to  sign  a  petition 
to  throw  me  into  bankruptcy.  To  accomplish 
this  only  three  signatures  were  necessary.  And 
so  eager  were  the  postal  authorities  to  have  a 
receiver  appointed  they  instructed  these  men 
to  tell  my  customers  that  my  business  was  a 
swindle,  that  I  was  in  jail  and  that  two 
customers  had  already  signed  whereas  not  one 
had  signed. 

In  a  case  of  this  kind  when  a  solvent  person 
has  been  raided  without  cause  the  postal 
authorities  will,  if  they  can  with  the  aid  of  a 
tricky  law  firm,  force  him  into  insolvency. 
Their  hidden  desire  is  not  only  to  injure  the 
solvent  person's  customers  and  so  antagonize 
them  against  him  but  to  ruin  him  financially. 
If  they  can  do  this,  leave  him  without  funds 
to  defend  himself,  to  retain  lawyers  and  to 
defray  necessary  printing  bills  to  carry  his  case 
up  on  appeal,  he  will  be  as  helpless  as  a  rabbit 
in  the  clutches  of  a  boa-constrictor. 

The  impression  that  before  a  post-office  in- 
spector could  arrest  a  man  it  was  necessary, 
because  the  law  so  stated,  to  have  some  judge 
sign  a  warrant  was  all  bosh.  Without  a  war- 
rant, without  evidence  of  guilt,  without  the 
semblance  of  an  investigation  I  was  hand- 
cuffed, my  books  ransacked  and  my  property 
stolen. 

In  a  small  gold  frame  was  a  picture  of  my 
dead  mother.  The  picture  not  being  con- 
vertible into  cash  was  torn  in  two  and  left  on 
my  desk  but  they  stole  the  gold.  Hence,  it 
would  seem  no  crime  was  too  great,  too  petty, 
too  contemptible,  for  these  inspectors  to  com- 
mit. 

The  New  York  World,   March   12th,    1912, 


171 

quoted  Chief  Post-office  Inspector  Dickson, 
as  follows: — "Uncle  Sam  invests  us  with  ample 
authority.  We  can  go  as  far  as  we  like,  batter 
down  doors  and  pry  open  desks."  So  in  ad- 
dition to  my  word  for  it  you  have  this  official's 
word. 

Now,  the  next  few  days — ^was  there  an5rthing 
doing? 

There  was. 

Public  sentiment  is  the  strongest  influence 
in  the  world.  Guilty  or  not  guilty  no  man 
can  stand  against  it.  Newspapers  mould  senti- 
ment. Post-office  inspectors  and  government 
prosecutors  know  this.  And  whenever  an  in- 
nocent man  is  marked  for  conviction  those  in 
the  plot  start  a  newspaper  campaign  against 
him  and  endeavor  in  every  conceivable  way  to 
besmirch  his  character.  If  previously  the  re- 
cipient of  newspaper  notoriety  it  is  easy  by 
adding  more  coals  to  inflame  sentiment  against 
him.  So  far-reaching,  all  powerful,  is  this 
subtle  influence  that  the  battle  is  won  before  it 
begins  if  the  community  and  press  unwittingly 
are  with  the  conspirators  and  against  the  ac- 
cused person.  To  turn  sentiment  against  me 
no  stone  was  left  unturned.  Government 
officials  gave  out  interviews  and  made  state- 
ments knowing  them  to  be  false.  Chief  Dick- 
son, in  a  page  interview  with  a  Herald  reporter, 
after  recording  how  courageous  he  was,  having 
"often  been  under  fire  when  running  down 
safe  blowers  and  yeggmen,"  added:  "The 
Jared  Flagg  outfit  w^as  about  as  dangerous  a» 
any  band  I  ever  tackled." 

How  brave  was  he?  What  happened  at  the 
moment  of  the  raid?  I  heard  no  commotion 
and  when  I  looked  up  saw  a  man  with  a  re- 
volver standing  in  front  of  the  desk  at  which 
I  was  writing.  He  blurted  out:  "You  are 
under  arrest."      The   next  moment   the   place 


172 

was  alive  with  detectives  and  police  officers.  I 
have  never  carried  a  pistol  and  it  is  safe  to 
assume  that  none  of  the  young  women  book- 
keepers were  armed.  What  show  would  I  have 
had  had  I  attempted  to  resist  being  kid- 
napped? 

There  were  six  doors  leading  into  my  office 
and  two  officers  were  stationed  at  each  en- 
trance. Four  guarded  my  safes.  Interest, 
however,  centred  in  the  private  office;  here 
there  was  standing  room  only.  Armed  men 
were  behind,  in  front  and  on  each  side  of  me. 
As  soon  as  I  collected  my  wits  I  reached  for  a 
telephone  but  was  pounced  upon.  "Can  I 
not  communicate  with  my  brother;  1  want  him 
to  go  my  bail?  '  I  asked.  "You'll  get  no 
bail,"  was  the  reply.  I  proceeded  to  open  the 
humidor  intending  to  light  a  cigar  but  the  key 
was  snatched  from  my  hand.  My  handkerchief 
was  in  my  hip  pocket  and  when  I  was  about 
to  draw  it  two  officers  with  vise-like  grips 
pinioned  my  arms  behind  me  thinking  I  in- 
tended to  pull  a  gun.  When  satisfied  I  wa« 
not  armed  they  released  their  hold  and  I  cas- 
ually reached  for  a  telephone  to  call  up  my 
lawyer,  but  was  prevented  from  doing  so  by 
an  officer  with  a  physique  who  with  an  oath 
said:  "What  is  the  matter  with  you —  are  you 
looking  for  trouble?"  "What  is  the  use  of 
looking  for  something  I  have  already  found?" 
I  asked.  His  manner  changed,  he  even  went 
so  far  as  to  compliment  me,  that  is,  intended 
it  as  such  when  he  assured  me  I  was  "no  piker." 
"Well,"  said  I,  "If  I  cannot  telephone;  cannot 
smoke;  cannot  even  blow  my  nose,  may  I  eat?" 
That  little  word  produced  its  effect.  I  could 
eat,  but  they  would  have  to  go  with  me.  Four- 
teen officers  convoyed  me  to  lunch  and  judging 
from  the  bill  presented  me  not  a  man  among 
them  was   troubled  with   indigestion.      I   took 


173 

them  to  ''Browne's  Chop  House"  and  later  they 
took  me  to  the  Tombs  via  the  Federal  Building. 

Two  or  three  days  thereafter  Postmaster- 
General  Hitchcock  was  reported  in  the  Wash- 
ington and  New  York  papers  as  having  com- 
mended the  Chief  and  his  men  for  their  brav- 
ery. 

United  States  Marshall  Henkel,  October 
29th,  191  1,  in  a  page  article  in  the  New  York 
World,  knowing  no  more  about  the  intricacies 
of  a  stock  broker's  business  than  a  coal  heaver 
might  know  (this  is  no  reflection  on  the  heaver) 
compared  my  establishment  to  a  "520  per  cent 
Miller  Syndicate." 

First  deputy  Post-office  Inspector  Kincaid, 
six  days  after  the  abduction,  before  I  had  had 
an  opportunity  to  say  a  word  in  my  defense, 
signed  a  printed  circular  carrying  with  it  the 
authority  of  the  Government  and  mailed  it 
broadcast  over  the  country  proclaiming  me  a 
fraud  and  a  swindler. 

With  these  misleading,  lying  manifestos  em- 
bedded in  the  minds  of  the  people  from  whom 
my  jurors  w^ere  to  be  chosen,  he  and  the  others 
sanctimoniously  talked  about  according  me  an 
impartial  trial. 

Before  the  indictment  on  which  I  was  to  be 
tried  had  been  found,  before  the  Grand  Jury 
had  been  impaneled — the  Jury  which  was  to 
decide  whether  or  no  I  should  be  placed  on  trial 
— these  officials  to  arouse  the  people  against 
me  and  incidentally  to  advertise  themselves  in- 
augurated this  newspaper  campaign  in  which 
the  aforementioned  and  many  other  exquisite- 
ly illustrated  effusions  were  circulated,  not  only 
in  all  the  cities  but  in  many  towns  and  hamlets 
throughout  the  country. 

Throw  dirt  at  a  man — ^keep  throwing  it — 
and  in  time  people  will  begin  to  think  he  de- 
serves it. 


174 

Having  made  it  impossible  for  me  to  prose- 
cute successfully  the  owners  of  the  New  York 
World  by  illegally  arresting  me  it  then  became 
imperative  in  order  to  make  it  all  seem  straight 
that  an  indictment  should  be  found.  The 
people  already  incited  should  now  be  given  an 
opportunity  to  accuse  me  of  having  used  the 
mails  with  intent  to  defraud.  And  to  avoid 
the  possibility  of  a  miscarriage  of  injustice  and 
to  make  it  appear  beyond  peradventure  to  be 
the  duty  of  the  people  to  so  accuse  me,  some- 
one must  be  found  to  appear  before  the  repre- 
sentatives of  the  people,  the  Federal  Grand 
Jurors,  and  swear  I  "intended"  to  defraud 
him.  As  no  one  had  been  defrauded  no 
customer  of  mine  would  complain.  It  was, 
therefore,  up  to  Chief  Dickson  to  produce 
someone  who  would.  His  first  assistant,  Elmer 
L.  Kincaid,  suggested  Bertha  L.  Bentley  of 
Corry,  Pa.,  the  town  from  which  he  (Kincaid) 
came.  She,  a  life-long  friend  of  his,  would 
accommodate  him.  He  did  not  like  to  ask 
her,  he  told  me  so  himself,  but  he  had  a  family 
to  support  and  his  position  was  at  stake.  Be- 
sides, the  Chief  was  his  friend.  The  Chief 
was  in  a  "tight  box,"  had  sold  himself  to  the 
New  York  World  for  money,  and  he  felt  it  his 
duty  to  protect  the  Chief's  incorruptible  repu- 
tation. Whereupon,  the  dear,  good,  old  soul, 
Mrs.  Bentley,  raised  her  right  hand  and  swore: 
**So  help  me  God!  Jared  Flagg  'intended'  to 
rob  me."  She  did  not  know  me,  had  never 
seen  me,  was  never  in  my  office,  was  never 
asked  to  send  me  a  dollar,  never  did  send  me 
one,  never  intended  to  send  me  one;  and  her 
only  reason  for  taking  the  oath,  she  said,  was 
to  accommodate  her  old  friend,  Elmer.  "If 
I  caused  anyone  any  inconvenience  I  am  very 
sorry" — she  said. 

Can  you  beat  it? 

The  Chief  having  now  performed  his  duty  as 


175 

the  New  York  World  saw  it,  Henry  A.  Wise, 
at  that  time  United  States  Attorney,  forthwith 
turned  the  case  over  to  Assistant  United  States 
Attorney,  Claude  A.  Thompson,  to  prosecute. 

This  young  man  never  having  had  his  name 
prominently  before  the  public  was  elated  over 
the  prospect  of  distinguishing  himself  by  send- 
ing a  well  known  man  to  jail. 

The  charge  against  me  was  not  that  I  had 
committed  a  crime,  but  that  I  "intended"  to 
commit  one. 

Prosecutor  Thompson,  by  insisting  he  knew 
more  about  my  "intentions"  than  I  knew  my- 
self, prevailed  upon  the  authorities  in  Wash- 
ington to  place  at  his  disposal  thousands  of 
dollars  with  which  to  work  up  a  case  against 
me.  He  had  no  animus  against  me  but  this 
was  his  first  big  case,  the  opportunity  of  his 
life,  and  if  by  any  ruse  he  could  beguile  a  jury 
into  believing  a  crime  had  been  contemplated, 
even  if  not  committed,  he  would  be  promoted 
and  applauded  as  a  fearless  public  prosecutor 
— his  future  would  be  eissured.  It  pained  him 
to  raise  himself  up  by  pulling  me  down  but: 
"I  must  do  my  duty" — he  said. 

On  the  eve  of  the  day  he  was  placed  in 
charge  of  the  case,  before  he  had  had  time  even 
to  examine  the  papers,  he  wrote  to  his  sister  in 
Tonawanda,  N.  Y.  that  he  now  had  the  "chance 
of  his  life." 

Would  an  individual  capable  of  being  actu- 
ated by  such  an  ambition  be  likely  for  any 
reason  to  forego  that  which  he  considered  to 
be  the  opportunity  of  his  life? 

Knowing  nothing  at  that  time  of  his  vicious 
nature  I  called  on  him.  Eventually  I  called 
on  officials  higher  up,  but  the  only  satisfaction 
I  received  was  that  the  matter  would  be  in- 
vestigated— would    be    referred    back    to    Mr. 


176 

Thompson  with  instructions  to  investigate  him- 
self and  report  the  outcome  of  the  investigation 
to  himself. 

Finally,  incensed  beyond  endurance,  I  wrote 
and  published  a  pamphlet  entitled  "The  Flagg 
Raid.  "  In  this  booklet  I  told  them  what  I 
thought  of  them  and  their  methods  of  dis- 
pensing injustice,  I  also  told  Thompson  what 
I  thought  of  him  and  his  method  of  investi- 
gating himself.  And  I  closed  the  last  chapter 
by  saying:  "that  if  any  one  of  them  could 
show  me  a  dollar  ever  taken  from  money  be- 
longing to  one  customer  and  sent  to  another, 
or  if  they  could  show  me  a  dollar  ever  sent 
to  a  customer  not  honestly  made  on  Wall 
Street,  or  if  they  could  point  to  a  bucketed, 
bogus,  fictitious,  or  crooked  entry  of  any  kind 
on  my  books  from  the  day  I  started,  January 
2d,  1  908,  down  to  and  including  the  day  of  the 
raid  September  23d,  1911,  I  would  go  before 
any  judge  they  might  name  and  plead  guilty 
on  the  spot." 

Sixty-two  thousand  copies  of  this  booklet 
were  printed  by  the  Charles  Francis  Press. 
A  copy  was  mailed  to  every  lawyer  in  Greater 
New  York  and  Washington,  D.  C.  Also  to 
every  postmaster,,  congressman,  senator,  and 
high  office  holder  in  the  United  States.  Many 
copies  were  sold  on  news-stands  especially  at 
the  Park  Row  Building,  in  which  the  offices  of 
Claude  A.  TTiompson  were  located;  and  if  it 
was  the  ambition  of  this  young  man's  life  to 
convict  me  before  the  point  of  my  pen  had 
pricked  him  can  you  imagine  his  aspirations 
after  it  had  commenced  to  puncture  him? 

"Within  thirty  days  I  shall  have  Flagg  eating 
on  tin  plates  in  Atlanta" — he  said.  But  my 
confidence  in  the  people  was  then,  and  is  now, 
sublime.  I  have  always  found  that  the  people 
as  a  whole  believe  in  fair  play.      And  I  knew 


177 

that  when  the  people  knew  the  truth  no  jail 
in  this  country  would  be  strong  enough  to  hold 


178 


CHAPTER  12 

Thirty  days  passed — a  thousand  days  passed 
— during  which  time  Prosecutor  Thompson 
poured  out  the  people's  money.  He  engaged 
several  accountants  and  after  they  had  worked 
three  years  on  my  stolen  books  making,  under 
his  direction,  straight  entries  appear  crooked, 
and  after  discrediting  my  most  important  wit- 
nesses by  having  them  indicted,  and  after  de- 
vising and  revising  one  hundred  and  forty-two 
lies,  as  itemized  in  my  "bill  of  exceptions,"  he 
finally  felt  prepared  to  trick  a  jury  into  render- 
ing a  verdict  against  me. 

My  case  forthwith  was  called  for  trial  and  his 
ambition,  my  conviction,  was  achieved. 

In  his  opening  address  he  informed  the  jury 
I  had  obtained  money  under  false  pretenses  by 
misrepresenting  my  business;  and  to  prove  it 
would  place  customers  of  mine  on  the  stand. 
He  did,  but  instead  of  testifying  against  me 
they  testified  for  me. 

The  New  York  Sun  at  the  time,  October 
23d,  1914,  published  that  the  Government 
witnesses  in  the  Flagg  Case  proved  to  be  satis- 
fied customers.  The  New  York  American, 
same  date,  page  7,  column  3,  made  a  similar 
statement,  also  other  papers. 

But  had  a  thousand  testified  for  me  it  would 
have  done  me  no  good.  I  was  indicted — that 
settled  it— that  meant,  that  means,  guilt  in  the 
zninds  of  judges,  jurors  and  people  at  large. 

Not  one  person  in  a  thousand  will  or  can 
draw  a  distinction  between  an  indictment  and 


179 

a  conviction.  Even  intelligent  jurors  regard 
an  indicted  person  a  guilty  person  and  the 
word  of  a  person  considered  guilty  carries  no 
weight.  An  assertion  unsupported  by  evidence 
when  made  by  a  government  prosecutor  car- 
ries more  weight  owing  to  the  prestige  of  his 
position  than  any  amount  of  evidence  an  in- 
dicted person  can  submit,  owing  to  the  stigma 
of  his  position. 

To  discredit  testimony  that  was  to  be  given 
in  my  favor  Mr.  Thompson  had  ten  men  in- 
dicted— my  ten  most  important  witnesses  be- 
cause they  had  been  associated  with  me  in  the 
business  and  could  of  their  own  personal 
knowledge  swear  the  entries  in  my  books  had 
been  honestly  made.  When  he  stigmatized 
these  men,  blasted  their  lives  knowing  they 
were  honest — just  as  honest  as  you,  the  reader, 
when  he  filled  the  lives  of  their  wives,  sons  and 
daughters  with  humiliation,  sorrow  and  tears, 
he  committed  in  the  name  of  justice  a  crime 
tended  to  fill  the  souls  of  decent  men  and 
decent  women  with  detestation  and  horror. 

My  lawyer  John  M.  Coleman  says: — "The 
crimes  committed  by  Claude  A.  Thompson  and 
his  little  hallowed  coterie  of  mercenaries,  rep- 
resenting themselves  as  the  whole  United 
States  Government  of  America,  rise  mountain 
high  above  the  crimes  charged  against  Jared 
Flagg  even  though  he  were  guilty." 

Before  the  trial  I  wrote  to  Thompson's 
superior — United  States  Attorney  Marshall — 
that  these  men  had  had  no  voice  in  the 
management  of  the  business  and  if  any  person 
was  to  be  blamed  I  alone  was  that  person. 

On  the  strength  of  this  letter  Marshall  wrote 
my  lawyer,  that  he  would  dispose  of  the 
indictments  but  not  until  the  out-come  of  my 
case  had  been  settled.  Which  in  plain  English 
meant  that  after  the  indictments  had  served 


180 

their  purpose  by  creating  the  false  impression 
in  the  minds  of  the  jurors  that  my  ten  most 
important  witnesses  were  criminals — unworthy 
of  belief — the  indictments  would  then  be 
quashed.  This  he  did.  As  soon  as  I  was 
convicted  the  make-believe  criminal  charges 
preferred  against  these  men  were  dismissed, 
as  the  court  records  show. 

Would  anything  so  unfair  be  tolerated  at  a 
prizefight,  dogfight  or  cockfight?  Hardly! 
The  shining  lights  of  the  scum  of  creation 
would  not  stand  for  it. 

Prosecutor  Thompson  asserted  that  the 
money  my  customers  withdrew  as  profits  did 
not  come  out  of  Wall  Street  but  out  of  the 
principal,  and  that  he  could  prove  it;  and  when 
he  failed  to  do  so,  I,  believing  at  the  time,  as 
per  the  law,  that  the  burden  of  proof  rested 
with  the  prosecution,  did  not  refute,  as  I  could 
and  should  have  done,  his  assertion.  I  shoutd 
have  said  to  the  jury:  Gentlemen,  you  have 
heard  his  assertion.  Now  I  am  going  to  pro- 
duce witnesses  to  prove  where  every  dollar  of 
the  six  hundred  and  eighty-seven  thousand  dol- 
lars my  customers  withdrew  from  me  came 
from.  I  am  going  to  the  vitals  of  this  matter; 
not  one  dollar  is  going  to  be  over-looked;  I  am 
going  to  begin  at  the  beginning;  I  am  going  to 
subpoena  the  exchange  member  from  whom  the 
first  lot  of  stock  was  purchased,  then  the  ex- 
change member  to  whom,  at  an  advanced  price, 
it  was  subsequently  sold — the  difference  be- 
tween the  price  paid  and  price  received  will 
show  you  where  the  first  profit  came  from 
Then  I  am  going  to  call  your  attention  to  the 
next  transaction;  subpoena  the  next  exchange 
member,  and  next,  and  so  on  until  all  the 
thousands  of  transactions  made  by  my  cus- 
tomers during  the  years  in  which  they  operated 
through  me  have,   in  the  same  manner,   been 


181 

analyzed,  verified  and  sworn  to  by  reputable, 
disinterested,  witnesses — New  York  Stock  Ex- 
change members.  It  was  my  "day  in  court" 
and  had  I  insisted  upon  adopting  this  line  of 
defense  I  could,  in  spite  of  all  objections,  have 
forced  my  acquittal.  By  relying  on  the  law 
and  closing  my  side  of  the  case  without  in  this 
way  refuting  his  assertion  I  made  the  mistake 
of  my  life — he  took  advantage  of  my  blunder 
and  won  out. 

Few  appreciate  all  that  it  means  to  a 
Government  prosecutor  to  win  a  big  case.  It 
means  far  .more  than  money. 

Prosecutor  Thompson  prided  himself  on  be- 
ing a  component  part  of  the  Department  of 
Justice,  and  would  be  the  last  one  to  sell  him- 
self for  money — the  bills  might  be  marked — 
but  for  promotion,  rank,  honor  and  social 
distinction,  he  was  not  only  eager  to,  but  did, 
sell  himself  body  and  soul. 

From  start  to  finish  he  lied'^to  my  jurors 
knowingly.  He  appealed  to  their  intelligence 
expecting  to  profit  by  their  ignorance,  well 
knowing  they  were  unacquainted  with  the  in- 
tricacies of  financial  bookkeeping.  If  he  could 
flim-flam  them  into  believing  me  insolvent  he 
knew  I  would  be  consigned  to  a  living  tomb 
and  he  would  be  awarded  laurels  galore. 
Spurred  on  by  this  ambition,  just  as  he  was 
closing  his  final  summing  up,  he  stepped  for- 
ward with  a  roll  of  paper  in  his  hand  and 
said:- 

"Gentlemen,  I  have  here  a  statement  pre- 
pared, under  my  direction,  by  Government 
Accountants.  It  shows  the  true  condition  of 
Flagg's  aff^airs  Sept.  23d,  1911,  and  I  want 
you  to  take  it  with  you  to  the  jury  room,  I 
want  you  to  examine  it,  ponder  over  it,  and 
bring  in  a  verdict  in  accordance  with  the  facts 
which  it  reveals." 


182 

My  lawyer,  John  M.  Coleman,  objected  on 
the  ground  that  the  statement  was  absolutely 
false.  "In  that  it  represented  the  broker,  Mr. 
Flagg,  to  be  the  speculator;  that  it  charged  up 
to  him  the  shrinkages  in  his  customers  accounts 
— ^amounting  to  over  five  hundred  thousand 
dollars — whereas,  his  customers  were  respons- 
ible to  him  for  these  shrinkages;  that  they  had 
put  up  as  margin  over  one  million  dollars  in 
cash  for  the  express  purpose  of  protecting  him 
against  such  shrinkages;  that  in  law,  and  in 
equity,  and  in  all  justice,  Mr.  Flagg  was  only 
responsible  to  his  customers  for  their  credit 
balances.  Mr.  Flagg  was  not  running  a  bucket- 
shop  or  conducting  a  discretionary  pool.  He 
was  simply  executing  signed,  specifiic,  orders, 
just  as  any  other  stock  broker  would  execute 
specific  orders." 

The  Court,  assuming  the  foregoing  objec- 
tions to  be  immaterial,  over-ruled  lawyer  Cole- 
man, and  allowed  the  jurors  to  take  the 
pernicious  document  to  the  jury  room,  and 
they  did. 

Nothing  could  have  been  further  from  the 
truth  than  to  say  this  statement  showed  the 
true  condition  of  my  affairs. 

Part  of  the  truth  is  often  a  stupendous  lie, 
and  only  part  of  my  assets  were  revealed  in 
this  statement. 

Had  the  members  of  my  jury  been  im- 
paneled from  members  of  the  Stock  Exchange 
or  their  clerks  or  from  my  own  customers,  the 
vicious  nature  of  the  statement  would  have 
been  quickly  detected.  They  would  not  have 
wasted  hours  in  "pondering"  over  a  trial 
balance  sheet  that  debited  a  stock  broker  with 
money  he  did  not  get — the  shrinkages  in  his 
customers  margins.  If  that  was  the  lawful 
way  to  do  it  there  would  not  be  a  solvent  com- 
mission house  broker  on  all  Wall  Street.      But 


183 

Thompson,  the  accredited  representative  of  the 
people,  "got  away  with  it." 

Not  one  of  those  twelve  men,  on  my  jury, 
understood  the  statement  to  be,  or  realized 
that  it  was,  a  deliberate  fraud,  perpetrated  by 
agents  of  the  United  States  Government, 
banded  together  in  a  conspiracy  to  deceive 
them.  They  knew  it  simply  as  a  Government 
Exhibit  and  thought  it  honest.  And  after 
examining  it,  and  pondering  over  it  for  hours, 
they  very  naturally  brought  in  a  verdict  in  ac- 
cordance with  the  lies  which  it  did  not  reveal 
to  them. 

"Guilty!" — the  foreman  said. 
And  then  what? 

Flowers  were  placed  on  Mr.  Thompson's 
desk — friends  complimented  him — the  "New 
York  World"  lauded  him — the  government  re- 
warded him,  raised  his  salary  to  one  hundred 
dollars  per  week  and  promoted  him  to  first 
assistant  United  States  Attorney  of  the  south- 
ern district  of  New  York. 
And  then  what? 
Then  he  was  miserable. 

Before  and  during  the  trial  he  seemed  de- 
void of  moral  sense;  but  after  his  triumph  the 
"still  small  voice"  commenced  to  haunt  him; 
he  could  not  sleep;  something  must  be  done. 
He  went  to  a  sanitarium;  but  there  he  evidently 
endured  the  agonies  of  the  damned;  instead  of 
gaining  he  lost  thirty  pounds. 

It  is  too  bad  he  took  his  "victory"  so  to 
heart.  I  had  no  intention  of  "eating  on  tin 
plates,"  and  was  not  in  jail  a  minute.  I  was 
out  on  bonds. 

Abducted,  indicted,  tried,  convicted,  sen- 
tenced and  knocked  down  in  the  first  round, 
I  was  coming  back  "strong"  in  the  second. 
This  should  have  eased  Mr.  Thompson's  con- 
science.     In  a  way  it  was  a  consolation  to  my 


184 

jurors  who  realized  when  too  late  that  they 
had  been  flabbergasted  into  pronouncing  me 
guilty.  To  a  man  they  wanted  to  see  their 
verdict  reversed  by  the  higher  Court. 

If  any  person  questions  this  let  him  com- 
municate with  them. 

Their  names  and  addresses  follow: — 

Henry  J.  Barrett 2072  Fifth  Ave. 

Wm.    H.   Warburton 371    West    1  I  7th  St. 

John   E.   Donovan 301    West   46th  St. 

E.   Nelson  Sims 19  East    198th  St. 

E.    Stacey   Nelson 15    West    38th   St. 

Thomas  M.  Cahill 233  East  23rd  St. 

Frank  D.   Mullen I    Madison  Ave. 

Wm.   M.   Eurbler 17   Beekman  Place 

Joseph   Ringler 858    East    169th   St. 

Felix  F.  Wiener 50  Church  St. 

Henry   Falleriu8....4   Travers    Harbor   Heights 

Charles  A.  Whipple... 58  West  57th  St. 

(all   of  the   City  of  New  York) 

One  juror  wrote  as  follows: — 

"Dear  Mr.  Flagg: 

At  your  trial  I  vsras  Juror  No.  1 2,  and 
voted  to  convict,  but  since  the  trial,  have 
become  convinced  you  are  not  guilty,  and 
fear  I  have  done  you  a  fearful  injustice,  and 
wish  to  do  all  I  can  to  correct  my  mistake. 
Very  truly  yours, 

C.  A.  WHIPPLE" 
Another  Juror,  No.  9  Joseph  Ringler,  wrote: 
"      X  X      I  was  unable  to  understand  the 

great    number    of    figures    submitted    and    so 
voted  to  convict." 

This  is  what  is  called  giving  the  defendant 
the  benefit  of  the  doubt. 

My  customers  also  wrote.  I  received  over 
six  hundred  communications,  every  one  of 
which  is  signed  and    reads  as  follows: — 

"Jared  Flagg, 

Despite  the  fact  a  jury  has  adjudged  you 
guilty,  I,  a  customer  of  yours,  still  believe 
you  to  be  innocent.  You  have  not  defrauded 
me  and  I  do  not  believe  you  ever  intended 
to  do  so." 

Do  these  letters  mean  anything? 

Do  these  signatures  signify  anything  ? 


185 

To  be  indicted,  convicted  and  sentenced 
— as  a  swindler — and  then  to  have  men — niea 
who  had  put  up  with  me  in  cash  over  one 
milHon  dollars — to  have  them — the  very  iTien 
whom  I  was  charged  with  having  swindled — 
to  have  them  rise  in  a  body  and,  over  their 
signatures,  make  a  declaration  of  this  kind — 
does  it  mean  anything? 

If  I  say  it  myself,  it  is  the  most  remarkable 
tribute,  the  most  magnificent  endorsement,  a 
person  in  my  position  ever  received. 


186 


CHAPTER  13. 

No  man  is  beaten  until  he  acknowledges  de- 
feat. I  had  been  "knocked  down"  but  not 
"out."  It  took  the  Government  five  years  to 
admit  this — to  admit  that  in  my  case  it  had 
made  a  mistake. 

Five  years  after  I  had  been  kidnapped  the 
Judges  of  the  United  States  Circuit  Court  of 
Appeals  unanimously  branded  the  raid  an  illeg- 
al act  as  follow: — 

X  X  "We  prefer  to  rest  our  decision  upon 
the  broad  ground  that  the  Constitutional  rights 
of  the  defendant,"  Jared  Flagg,  "were  violated 
by  the  unlawful  seizure  of  his  books  and 
papers  by  officers  and  agents  of  the  United 
States  acting  without  warrant  or  pretense  of 
legal  authority." 

"The  judgment  is  reversed." 

This  reversal  did  not  free  me.  And  any 
person  who  says:  "Oh,  well,  he  got  off  on  a 
legal  technicality,  but  he  must  have  done  some- 
thing or  the  Government  would  not  have 
raided  him,"  is  a  coward.  He  kicks  a  man 
when  down.  Whether  through  stupidity,  sus- 
picion or  maliciousness  the  result  is  the  same 
— the  kick  hurts. 

A  man  who  is  always  suspicious  of  others 
grives  you  a  very  good  line  on  himself.  But 
who  can  tell  what  a  stupid  person  will  do  to 
you?  He  may  "put  a  nail  in  the  coffin"  of 
his  best  friend  and  think  he  has  done  him  a 
favor.  A  stupid  man  is  just  as  dangerous  at  a 
malicious    one.      Some    persons    imagine    they 


137 

are  doing  me  a  good  turn  by  telling  people  1 
got  off  on  a  technicality  when  I  was  not  off — 
when  the  Circuit  Court  Judges  did  not  let  me 
off.  They  sent  my  case  back  to  be  tried — 
honestly.  And  pending  said  trial  they  held 
me  under  bonds — fifty  thousand  dollars — all 
of  which  is  a  matter  of  record. 

Take  the  record. 

First  round:  (dishonest  trial)  Defendant 
struck  "below  the  belt" 

Second  round:  (dishonest  trial  made  void) 
One  "knock  down"  scored  by  the  defense. 

Third  round:  (indictments  dismissed)  Prose- 
cution "knocked  out" — as  will  hereinafter  be 
set  forth. 

Now,  therefore,  with  a  clean  bill  of  health 
and  an  unblemished  reputation  I  am  once  more 
back  in  the  stock  brokerage  business.  I  use 
the  word  "unblemished"  because  my  reputa- 
tion has  withstood  the  acid  test  of  slander 
without  becoming  tarnished. 

Thousands  have  slandered  me  unintention- 
ally— have  insisted  that  I  not  only  was  raided 
but  convicted  by  the  Government.  They  had 
read  it  in  the  newspapers  and  thought  it  truo; 
but  there  is  no  truth  in  it. 

According  to  the  mandate  of  the  United 
States  Circuit  Court  of  Appeals — next  to  the 
highest  in  the  land — do  not  lose  sight  of  that 
little  fact — I  never  was  raided — never  was 
tried — never  was  convicted — never  was  sen- 
tenced. 

My  stock  brokerage  office  was  not  raided 
by  the  Government.  It  was  burglarized  by 
officials  acting  without  legal  authority  and  in 
violation   of   the   law. 

My  books  were  not  seized  by  the  Govern- 
ment, but  stolen  by  officials  acting  without 
legal  authority  and  in  violation  of  the  law. 


188 

I  was  not  arrested  by  the  Government,  I 
was  kidnapped  by  officials  acting  without 
legal  authority  and  in  violation  of  the  law. 

Because  of  these  unlawful  deeds  committed 
by  these  official  brigands,  I  was  in  the  name  of 
justice  heralded  throughout  the  land  a  fraud 
and  a  swindler. 

Because  I  was,  "without  warrant,  without 
pretense  of  legal  authority,"  thus  represented 
all  creation  sneered  at  me.  But  now  the 
Federal  Court  Judges  have  reversed  all  this 
and  have  condemned  those  who  had  condemn- 
ed me — to  suffer.  To  undergo  prolonged  sus- 
pense is  to  suffer. 

After  my  abduction  in  1911,  they  kept  me 
waiting  three  years  before  bringing  the  matter 
to  trial;  then  it  took  two  more  years  to  make 
them  admit  it  was  no  trial;  and  another  year 
before  it  pleased  the  United  States  Attorney 
to  exhonorate  me  by  withdrawing  the  charges 
which,  from  the  time  they  were  made,  he 
knew  could  not  be  sustained;  and  which  the 
Chief  Post  Office  Inspector  knew  were  spurious 
before  they  were  made. 

During  all  that  time,  dating  from  the  day 
that  band  of  armed  men  dashed  into  my  office 
and  kidnapped  me  to  the  day  my  bail  bonds 
w^ere  released — six  long  years — prison  bars, 
day  and  night.  Winter  and  Summer,  had 
loomed  before  me. 

You,  "gentle  reader,"  do  not  know  what 
that  means.  It  might  to  a  sensitive  soul  mean 
nervous  prostration — he  might  lie  down  and 
die.  But  not  I.  My  ancestors  fought  in  the 
Revolution,  and  no  Flagg  was  ever  known  to 
"lie  down." 

I  do  not  want  to  fight.  I  want  to  live  in 
peace;  but  I  am  an  American  citizen,  and  if 
attacked  will  give  them  "all  that  is  coming  to 
them." 


189 

Every  federal,  like  every  city,  official  who 
ever  attacked  me,  whether  for  money  or  its 
equivalent,  self-aggrandizement,  has  either 
been  reprimanded  and  suspended  or  requested 
to  resign. 

Police  Captain  Donohue  said  I  had  com- 
mitted a  crime;  but  was  afraid  to  take  the 
stand  and  say  so  under  oath.  He  was  repri- 
manded and  suspended. 

Police  Captain  Price  said  I  had  committed 
a  crime,  but  when  invited  to  step  up  in  court 
and  prove  it,  tip-toed  his  way  out.  He  also 
was  reprimanded  and  suspended. 

License  Commissioner  Bogart  said  I  had 
committed  a  crime,  and  to  prove  it  produced 
a  forged  copy  of  the  court  records  which  I 
showed  to  Mayor  Gaynor.  The  very  next  day 
at  the  Mayor's  request  Bogart  resigned. 

First  Deputy  Assistant  Post  Office  Inspector, 
Kincaid,  said  I  used  the  mails  with  "intent" 
to  defraud.  Now  he  is  engaged  in  the  per- 
fumery business. 

Chief  Post  Office  Inspector,  Dickson,  said 
I  "intended  "  to  commit  a  crime,  but  as  he  had 
committed  one — had  accepted  a  bribe — upon 
request  he  resigned. 

Assistant  United  States  Attorney,  Thomp- 
son, said  even  if  no  crime  had  been  committed 
that  made  no  difference.  It  was  not  what  I 
had,  or  had  not,  done,  it  was  what  I  "intended" 
doing;  and  so  sure  was  he  that  at  some  future 
time  I  "intended"  doing  wrong,  that  he  in- 
duced two  so-called  ''expert  government 
accountants"  to  commit  perjury  to  convince 
the  court  he  was  right.  Now  (1917)  upon 
request,  he  also  has  retired  to  civil  life. 

It  was  in  this  last  year,  1917,  when  I 
stepped  forward  for  the  third  round  (the  trial) 
that  I  discovered  there  was  to  be  no  trial. 

If  they  would  have  to  try  me  honestly  they 
would  not  try  me  at  all. 


190 

If  they  were  discredited  and,  therefore,  not 
to  be  given  the  benefit  of  every  doubt;  and  if 
the  burden  of  proof  was  not  to  rest  with  me, 
the  defendant;  and  if  a  new  trial  would  only 
result  in  incriminating  themselves,  why  have  a 
trial? 

Whereupon,  United  States  Attorney  Marshall 
told  the  court  he  would  not  have  a  trial.  He 
could  not  try  me,  he  said,  because  the  Circuit 
Court  of  Appeals  had  decreed  that  my  books 
had  been  unlawfully  seized;  and  he  could  not, 
therefore,  use  them  at  a  trial  to  prove  guilt. 

But  that  was  not  the  reason — that  was  only 
a  subterfuge. 

At  the  very  time  he  made  this  excuse  to 
the  court  my  books,  as  per  the  Chancery  Court 
files,  were  on  public  record  in  a  civil  case;  and 
could,  therefore,  have  been  subpoenaed  and 
lawfully  used  by  him  at  a  trial  and  he  knew  it 
—even  knew  exhibits  from  his  office  were 
being  used  in  this  civil  case. 

But  were  this  not  so;  were  all  the  foregoing 
facts  untrue;  even  then  he  would  not  have 
dared  to  confront  me  again  in  a  court  of  law; 
because  he  knew  I  had,  from  bitter  experience, 
discovered  that  the  burden  of  proof  rested 
with  the  defense,  not — as  the  law  states — ^with 
the  prosecution. 

I  should  have  expelled — should  have  dis- 
proved— ^beyond  doubt — ^beyond  all  unreason- 
able doubt — every  charge — every  assertion — 
every  insinuation — ^made  by  the  government 
prosecutors. 

This,  they  knew  I  now  could,  and  now 
would,  if  granted  a  new  trial,  do. 

I  would  be  vindicated.  I  would  have  to  be 
vindicated — trial  or  no  trial. 

Would  they  not,  therefore,  be  wiser  to 
vindicate  me  by  withdrawing  all  charges  pend- 
ing against  me,   rather   than   to   accord   me  a 


trial  by  jury  which  would  result  in  incrimin- 
ating them  and  in  vindicating  me? 

That  was  the  question.  The  question  they 
would  have  to  determine. 

It  would  be  painfully  humiliating  but  safei 
for  the  United  States  Attorney  to  do  the 
vindicating  quietly,  w^hen  I  wa&  not  around; 
rather  than  to  have  a  jury  do  it,  and  incident- 
ally hear  my  lawyer's  voice  ringing  throughout 
a  court  roonti  (filled  with  newspaper  reporters) 
denouncing,  and  incriminating,  him. 

That,  to  him — to  his  finer  sense  of  justice — ' 
would  be  repugnant. 

So  what  did  he,  the  "Honorable"  H. 
Snowden  Marshall,  do? 

Just  after  Congress  had  reprimanded  him, 
and  just  before  he  was  impelled  to  pass  in  his 
resignation;  he  sneaked  into  court  without 
notifjang  the  people — the  newspapers — my 
lawyer — or  me;  and  to  let  himself  down  as 
gently  as  possible,  took  back — took  back  as 
per  the  following  photographic  copy  of  the 
records — every  accusation — made  against  me 
— ^by  having  every  indictment — found  against 
me — dismissed. 

And  such  are  the  "crimes"  of 

JARED  FLAGG. 


DATE  DUE 

GAYLORD 

PRINTED  IN  U    S   A 

SOUTHERN  REG|0»^>£»£lL';g|£(| 


A    000  501  301     6 


